The Dark Savior: The Ice Cold Heart
by Paul Grey
Summary: War...War can change things. My name is Jason, Jason the Grovyle. All my life I have been fighting a war, both physical and emotional... Along the road, everyone I pass has a doubt that I will become their next ruler. But when I get pushed into a perilous position, I must to prove to everyone that I am worthy to be their king... by fighting a war in the most coldest place out here.
1. Prologue

**A/N: Yay my first fic! :D I am doing this story not for the attention but because its just so fun writing a story! I had this story all planed out so I might be able to update this faster. Please tell me how to improve my story, im new at this. My goal is by the end of this story is to make it have so much emotion and action, kind of like metal gear solid :D.**

**P.S. This Chapter has been edited a second time. I have rewritten most of the prologue. When I looked back to this prologue I thought, "Dear lord! How could I have been this bad?" I guess this shows how much I've improved through feedback and a betareader (ignore the beta request at the end of each chapter, I like to keep it there for memories) to help me. But no worries, I'll edit this and my previous chapters soon enough.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own pokemon I just own the characters I made up in the story.**

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><p>Prologue<p>

War…war can change things… like the way people live… the way we look at people… and possibly the way people act. The date in my time is four thousand ten, and war is a really big thing today in the world. I guess war is just one of those things we can't get enough of. Sometimes we go to war just because we desire something the other one has, like a hungry predator waiting to steal it's competitors prey. Sometimes two countries just hate each others guts so much that they come up with the solution that war will eliminate their foe… but they can't… because they don't have a reason to. Without a reason, the world would look upon that country as a coward with no honor, with intentions for power… the thing that we all fear and depend upon in the hands of a government. It's only a matter of time before we go so deep in the war that we destroy everything on the land and everything we once were… and possibly ourselves. About two thousand years ago, a species named the humans suffered that same fate… in the great war known as World War Three, a war fought between the regions and the countries.

In this war, it was join a side… or get caught in the crossfire between these sides… and die. At first, the war was fought with common manmade weapons used in all warfare… then it was fought with weapons of mass destruction. A majority of the countries stocked up on as many nuclear weapons as they could hold… and their fingers were on the button to release them. They were just waiting for the other one to make the first move, like some kind of staring game. Eventually, one of these countries broke first and launched their nuclear weapons, all at once. It wasn't much of an attack, but soon after that country assaulted its neighboring countries, it caused chain reaction between the others. It was then when they thought that it was now, or never. These countries panicked and press that very button they had their fingers on the whole time. The whole world was in flames, thus turning it into a nuclear fallout. Anything that wasn't incinerated in the blast radius of these weapons, was poisoned by the radiation that that traveled around the world. Eventually, everything in the world disappeared, every plant, every animal, even the humans didn't survive. Everything on the earth stood still… but it didn't. Strangely though, the only thing that survived the nuclear catastrophe… was the pokemon. It was as if the pokemon had some kind immunity against the radiation, even to this day we still don't know how survived the whole incident.

After the war, the pokemon had to rebuild the once beautiful lands that were destroyed, and clean up the mess the humans left behind. About a couple years later, we found out how to use human technology to survive on our own, and use it to clean up the mess they made. It took about a thousand years to cleanse the world of the past. After that was over with, it gave us more time to figure out how human technology worked. Soon however, we inherited the humans method of order to keep the world in check by making our own governments and policies. It wasn't long before we also inherited their weapons, strategies, and methods of war. After we discovered this newfound knowledge, we were eager to use it to good use. One day one of the regions went to war with another country, claiming that they had bad relations… but in truth, the region was just too eager to use its new weapons, to test out their new superiority. It wasn't long before other countries and regions began to think like them, influenced by violence and aggression. Once again the entire world was at war again, but it wasn't as bad as its previously infamous war.

As I said before we may go so deep in the war that we may destroy everything that we once were… well we did just that. Sometimes during a war, when the war seems at its bloodiest… when we witness something over the edge… we may ask ourselves that one question, "Was all this really necessary?" After the world leaders asked themselves that very question, they halted all of their activities of war before creating any further destruction, struggling to preserve what else the world had left.

We soon realized that it was already too late; we already destroyed the way we once lived. We found out that we became the very thing that we all hated the most… we became the humans in the form of pokemon. Ironic that we became the very thing that we all thought was the most evil creatures on the planet.

All the leaders from across the globe came together and agreed to never again to go to war unless the time was absolutely right. About another thousand years later, everything seemed to have settled down a bit. There wasn't as many wars as there were before… there was more talking than fighting. However the big thing that we debate about to this day is how a war between this country and that country could make everyone's lives better in many ridiculous ways.

I bet you're wondering who the heck am I and why am I giving you a speech about war and the past that we once lived in. Well, my name is Jason, Jason the Grovyle. But before tell you about me in the present day, I am going to tell you a memory when I was just a ten year old Treecko, strangely though it's the only childhood memory I have. The region I live in is called Naru, its one of the newer regions that was found in this time. In Naru I live in an enormous fifty story palace that's in the middle of a really thick forest that looks like a green ocean if you look from the top of the palace. I almost forgot to mention that I'm the prince of Naru… its no big deal really, I just hate getting all the attention from everybody. My father, king Ryoto (who is a Sceptile), is always off fighting wars or speaking for Naru. He always worry me and Queen Elizabeth (who is a Megainium), or should I say my mother. Whenever he gets back from a war or some other business he had to attend to, we both try to spend as much time as we can together before Naru enters another crisis. They say that there was never a better father and son than us, which I sometimes believed in. While my dad is off doing his job, my mom handles problems that arises in Naru… but she will soon has her hands… or uh, paws, or whatever, full after I tell you my childhood.

I was just a ten year old Treecko (just to remind you) back then, I recall that it was a dark and chilly night… nights in the Naru region were always so cold that you could see your breath in the freezing air. I was looking out of my window from my room which was placed at the very top of the palace, gazing down at the large group of guests entering the palace. From up there, they all looked like colored moving dots scurrying around. While I was looking over the crowd, my mother was rummaging through my wardrobe, looking for the perfect attire for me to wear at the celebration tonight.

It's a little tradition that we do in Naru, every pokemon that is of royal blood gets a huge birthday party on their tenth birthday, one that is more spectacular than the rest. A birthday to be remembered by the royal child. That's just because the child begins to be educated in how to become a king or queen after the celebration, so I was not looking forward to that.

"Aha! Here's that cape!" my mother exclaimed in joy.

I turned away from the window to see a small red cape being held up in the air in front of me by my mother's vines. "Aw mom, can't I wear something different please?" I pleaded in annoyance.

"Why? This was your fathers when he was little, you will love it!" my mother said with glee.

"No I won't," I said plainly.

"Oh yes you will, now hold still while I put this on." I really didn't want to look like an idiot in front of a crowd of a thousand pokemon, so I did what any other ten year old would do at the time… run away! I quickly leaped into the air, attempting to escape for the door to my room as if my life depended on it. But unfortunately for me, my mother predicted my desperate move and seized me with her vines in mid air. After my mother made sure she had a good hold over me, she restrained me onto the floor with her right vine and then made an effort to put the cape on me with her other. I squirmed under her vine in a fruitless effort to escape her grasp. "Jason please! Im only doing this because I love you!" she said in an irritated tone. "And … there, you see all done!" My mother said once she successfully placed the cape on me. She then carried me over and placed me in front of a mirror, which was to the right of my wardrobe. "Well what do you think?" my mother asked with a grin of accomplishment. I took a second to look at my self with the red cape before turning to my mother.

"I hate it," I simply said. As I was about to reach for the cape to tear it off, my mother stopped me.

"Don't you dare take that off Jason!" my mother yelled with an angry look on her face.

"Okay I'm not doing it!" I quickly said whilst I swiftly placed my arms by my sides in response. Just to let you know, I _really_ don't want to see my mom mad, she is scary!

My mother quickly changed from an angry look on her face, to a face filled with glee. "Good, now let's go down to the ball room," my mother said. I then recalled that my father was coming back from a far away region just for my birthday/celebration. Naru was currently at war with another region at the time, and my father was leading the fight, but since my tenth birthday was coming up, he put his plans for the war on hold just to celebrate my birthday with me. I was really thrilled when I found out that he was coming tonight, so I eagerly followed my mother out my room. We were in the hallway now, the rooms on the fiftieth floor was only reserved for members of the royal family or very important guests. The hallway was so long that you could barely see the other end of it. My room was placed at one end of the hallway while my parents' room was on the other end, and in the middle of it all is a single elevator that would take us to the bottom floor. Once we arrived at the elevator, my mother pushed the button to call the elevator up. Since we were on the fiftieth floor, it takes quite awhile for the elevator to ascend to the top to pick us up.

After impatiently waiting for few minutes that seemed to never pass, I finally heard a light dinging noise signaling the arrival of the elevator. "Yes finally," I said as the elevator doors opened its golden like doors to us.

The both of us walked into the cramped elevator calmly… well that was hard for me knowing that I will see my father tonight, so I was practically quivering with anticipation. My mother then pushed a button to start the elevators descent to the first floor.

_Well this is going to take a while,_ I thought to myself. I then began to think about my father just to pass the time. I haven't seen in how long? I guess about a year and a half. It seems like a pretty long time for my father to be away from home and not come back to say _hey how's everybody doing?_ But I can try to wait. I plan on spending every second I have with him the moment we meet, like any father and son would do if they were separated for some time… then say bye when the time comes. Thinking about our parting already just makes me feel slightly depressed.

The war that Naru was currently in at the time was between us and a neighboring region. I didn't know the details to what caused this war, but it didn't matter to me at the time.

Just for some more background information about Naru, it was originally a colony that migrated from America. Just recently, hundreds of regions began appearing in the Pacific Ocean for some odd reason. This compelling discovery gave way for a new age of exploration, which caused countries from all over the world to quickly claim whatever land was left available for them. Naru of course, is located in the middle of all these regions, in fact its right in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

A light dinging noise snapped me out of my thoughts which signaled our stop. After the elevator doors opened I ran out on all fours, eager to get to the ball room to see my father as fast as possible. But unfortunately for me, the white marble floor had just been recently waxed for the party tonight, so I ended up going nowhere. It took me a little while to realize what I was going on so I stopped immediately, but I only accomplished in making myself look like more of an idiot as I slipped onto the floor in a belly flop position. I scanned the area to see if there was anybody who witnessed my embarrassing experience. Nobody was there laugh at me… except my mother who was trying to control her hysterical laughter behind me. I quickly got up with a face bright as a tomato and turned towards my mom.

"Uh, mom, can we just go to the party now?" I suggested, trying to change the subject at hand.

My mother finally stopped laughing and cleared her throat before speaking. "What? Oh right, the ball room. Well let's get a move on, we don't want to keep our guests waiting. But not too fast or else we'll trip," my mother said, whilst suppressing a giggle.

I just sighed and rolled my eyes in response.

Since the palace was extremely huge, we had to go through a series of endless hallways to get to the ball room which was on the other side of the palace. After walking around the palace for a several long minutes, we finally came across a double wooden door to the ball room, which brought great relief over me. My mother pushed the door for me as we entered the ball room. The enormous room was filled with pokemon of all shapes and sizes. Most of the guests were rich families and friends that my mother and father made, very few of these pokemon were also shinys and legendaries. The ballroom is really huge and the ceiling looked high enough to make even the biggest of all pokemon feel comfortable, the right and left sides of the room had glass windows that were as high as the ceiling and you'd be able to see the courtyard surrounding the ballroom. The floor was made entirely out of white marble and the ceiling was decorated with artwork of Pokemon.

I carefully scanned the room for any signs of my father, but after a few seconds I gave up and came to the conclusion that he may be having a chat with somebody inside the crowd.

"Hey Jason over here!" a familiar young voice said. I turned slightly to the left to see a Murkrow waving his right wing in the air to get my attention.

"Mom can I go with my friends, please?" I pleaded to my mother.

My mother thought about it for a second before answering "Well… okay then, I see why not. I'll tell you if I see your father okay?"

"Okay thanks mom!" I replied before dashing off to meet with the little Murkrow. "Hey Leonardo, nice to see you again," I greeted. Leonardo's joyful expression soon changed to a frown of annoyance, I then realized what I did to make him like that.

"Jason I told you guys not call me that, call me Leo okay, got that?" Leonar- I mean, _Leo_ said with an annoyed tone.

"Okay, okay, sorry," I said defensively. "So, where are others?"

Leo quickly removed the frown on his face and said, "They're over at the courtyard, come on we've been waiting for you!" Leo motioned me to follow him as he flew over to the right side of the ballroom where a glass door lay open.

It wasn't long before we found ourselves outside of the palace and in the courtyard. The courtyard is pretty open, so the royal guards had plenty of room to do their daily training and perform other activities. The only thing other than grass growing in the yard was the bushes and flowers that grew on the sides of the place, as well as the trees that grew here and there. Surrounding the courtyard is a hundred foot tall wall that stretches around the property that we own, which is at least five miles long in all directions.

Outside there were several small Pokemon playing a game of tag, who are probably the guests' children. Most of these Pokemon out here are first evolutions, while there were very few miniature Pokemon who don't evolve at all. Within seconds I spotted a Torchic and a Pidove (both are male) sitting next to a tree in boredom. They stood up as soon they caught sight of me and Leo approaching them.

"Hey guys, I found him," Leo announced to the both of them.

"Hey dude where you've you been? We haven't seen you since like forever man," the Torchic said.

"Here in this fancy prison of course Drake," I answered. Drake is a really good friend to me, and an interesting one as well. Drake always traveling Naru with his father, so my friends and I rarely get the chance to see him. While Drake is traveling, his dad teaches him on finding peace. His father seems like a real pacifist. One day I chose to sneak out of the palace and then I came across Drake on the way to town, he wouldn't leave me alone! All he talked about was peace. At that time I really wished that I never snuck out of my prison, but he turned out to be a really nice guy after I got to know him, Drake was probably my first real outside friend.

"Hey, what's up Jason?" The Pidove greeted.

"Fine here. What about you Pax? Crashed into any windows lately?" I chuckled.

A tint of red was visible on Pax's face. "No shut up about that okay!" he said with a hint of hostility.

Here's the story of how I met Pax, one day I was minding my own business in my room, then out of nowhere a Pidove crashes through my window. Leo was trying to teach Pax how to fly that day, but Pax said that he got a little carried away once he got the hang of it. It was a little awkward and hilarious at the same time, just thinking about it made me laugh a little.

We all stayed outside for about half an hour, talking about what has changed since the last time we met, joked around, and even played our own little game of tag around the courtyard. Unfortunately our fun was interrupted when a Charizard named Arthur came up to us and said that my mother needed me.

Arthur is the most respected general in Naru, and is probably the busiest guy around the palace. Arthur has been my fathers' best friend since the day they both met in the army. I remember how my father told me stories about how he and Arthur fought by each others side, saving each others butts more than once. Arthur may be my father's best friend but he's definitely not mine. Why you may ask? Well one day Arthur promised to my father that he would do the job of protecting me while my father was away. So the problem is that he's annoyingly strict... I'm serious! If he sees me quickly walking down a hall he will say _don't run_, if he sees me play with my friends he will immediately stop the fun and tell me to stop playing so rough, if he sees me climb a tree he will tell me to get down. I'm a Treecko for crying out loud! We climb trees! There's a reason why we have the word _tree_ in our species name!

I said farewell to my friends and told them that I would return after whatever my mother needed me for was done. But before I would be on my way, Arthur, of course, insisted that he would to escort me to my mother, so I had to be walking next to the person I hated most in this world.

I wondered what exactly my mother needed me for, especially on my birthday. However, now that I think about it, my mom did say that she would call me if she saw my father. I grew excited over the thought, all my patience will finally pay off when I see my father again.

After Arthur and I arrived at the ballroom, I desperately scanned the room for any sign of my father. Sadly though, I didn't catch sight him.

_He must be somewhere in here_, I thought to myself, trying to hold on to whatever hope I had left.

It wasn't long before I found my mom having a friendly chat with a group of several grass types. She however broke away from the group when she spotted me and Arthur approaching her.

"Here he is my queen," Arthur said with his arms behind his back.

"Thank you Arthur, you can take your leave now," my mother said. Arthur nodded in response and went off to somewhere in the crowd of guests.

"Is dad here yet?" I asked with anticipation in my eyes.

"I'm sorry Jason, he's not here yet," my mother said apologetically. My heart sank in disappointment in the absence of my father.

_What's taking him so long?_ I thought.

"Come on Jason, it's time for you to blow out the candles. Everyone is just dying to get a piece of that cake the royal chefs made for you," my mother suggested when she saw the apparent look of disappointment clearly on my face.

_Well at least I get to have some cake right now_. But another thought came into my mind… _He's_ _going to miss me blow out the candles_.

My mother brought me to a table in the back of the room, and on it is a 10 foot tall chocolate cake with white icing covering every inch of it. The sight of it just made my mouth water. The royal chefs really outdid themselves this time, they probably knew that I craved chocolate since the last time I raided their storage room for chocolate… unfortunately they put a lock on it to prevent me from eating half their supply again.

The candles were now lit and my mother had directed everybody's attention towards me. She began with her small speech she rehearsed so much, about the little tradition we were doing tonight and why was it more special than all my other birthdays. I wasn't really paying much attention to my mother, but I'm sure she said something about me being the next king or something. After my mother wrapped up her little speech everybody began to sing happy birthday to me. While this was all taking place, I was desperately surveying the room for any sign of my father, searching every face of the crowd present. However when I gave up searching and was a hundred percent sure he wasn't currently in the room, I had my eyes fixed on the ballroom doors, hoping that he would come in at the last second before I blew out the candles.

"Jason? Jason is something wrong?" My mother whispered next to me.

I quickly snapped out of my little trance at hearing my mothers' voice. "What? Oh nothing," I replied as if nothing was wrong with me whatsoever. All hope of him arriving was suddenly lost. _Well better get this over with then_, I thought sullenly. I slowly moved forward… took a deep breath… and whispered my birthday wish for nobody but me to hear. "I wish my dad was here." then finally, I blew out the birthday candles.

Everyone in the ballroom was now clapping in celebration of my tenth birthday, all joyous and proud for me…except for myself. The moment I blew out those candles my heart shattered into a million pieces, knowing that my father wasn't there to celebrate my birthday for the first time in my life. No one noticed this, but I felt a teardrop roll down my cheek… I ignored the tear like it was nothing and let it drop to the ground.

Minutes later, everyone was already lined up in front of the table that holds the cake, so that they may have a taste of the fine work the royal chefs made. I decided to ask my mom where my dad was at this moment, hoping to get an answer, hopefully an answer that would convince me to forgive my fathers absence. In the far left side of the ballroom I saw my mother talking to Arthur, obviously giving her a report of recent news because of the official posture he was in. I made my way towards the both of them, struggling to slip by the crowd of guests that were in my way. I also took note that my mother and Arthur didn't seem to notice me approaching them. As I finally came up to them, I was about to ask my mother the question that has been bugging me for so long, until my mother said something that peeped my interest.

"No please, don't tell him now it will break his heart, plus it's his birthday!" My mother said in a distressed tone.

"As you wish my queen, we will tell him in the morning," Arthur said calmly.

"Fine, but I just don't know how to tell him!"

"We have to give him the news soon, otherwise he will start to worry about him, which would just make things harder for us express the truth."

"I know, but it's not everyday he loses his father in some place a thousand miles away from home!"

"What?" I said in a whisper loud enough for them to hear. They quickly turned to me at the sound of my voice, noticing me standing there for the first time with looks of worry on their faces.

"J-Jason, I uh … Jason?" My mother stuttered. Sorrow filled my heart almost immediately like a wave.

I couldn't believe it! Is my father is really gone? _No it can't be true_. I had to get this processed through my mind… I had to be alone for awhile. I quickly ran towards the ballroom door.

"Jason! Jason wait!" My mother called, but I ignored her. At that moment I felt like if I needed to be alone from everyone else.

I swiftly made several sharp turns in the hallway, luckily for me I didn't slip on the floor despite the speed I was in, plus there was no body in the hallways to get in my way. Soon enough I was by the elevator with tears ready to burst in my eyes. I pushed the button to signal the elevator, and luckily for me nobody had used it yet, so immediately the doors opened for me. I wiped away my tears and stepped inside, I could already hear the footsteps of my mother approaching so I quickly pushed the button with the number fifty on it. Before my mother got a chance to catch even a glimpse of me, the doors slowly closed shut and started to ascend towards the top floor.

_How_ _could it be? My father… dead? No he can't be dead he's way too tough to be killed in the hands of some random guy…right?_ I thought to myself, keeping whatever hope I had left alive. _Maybe he's just hiding in a hole somewhere and everybody thinks he's just dead_… I kept denying the fact that my father was really gone by making up excuses, but I knew my father well enough… he wouldn't hide in a hole. No, he would rather fight than to hide from the enemy. _Maybe he really is dead…_ that was the last thought that entered my head before the elevator doors opened for me. I quickly ran to my room as fast as my little feet could carry me. When I finally arrived at my room, I entered it and then shut the door behind me, giving the, _Leave me alone_, sign to anyone who wanted to talk to me.

I then jumped onto my bed and buried my face into my pillow, letting all my emotions flow out like a river. However, when I heard a, _poof_ sort of sound, I raised my head only to see nothing in front of me. _Must have been nothing_, I convinced myself.

I had to stop this crying… I had to be strong as my dad… my father would be ashamed to see me like this. I had to be strong for him. My eyes slowly closed, and I was in a deep sleep.

_So much for birthday wishes._

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><p><strong>AN: Took me quite awhile to get this prologue finished but its done. Poor Jason, I actually feel sorry for a character I made up. So did I do a good job at making this emotional lol? Okay I'm new at this so please don't make me feel bad. Reviews are greatly appreciated by all and tell me how to improve my story please… what no? You're not going to review? Well okay that's fine, I'm not forcing you or anything… but just in case you change your mind the review button is waiting for you to click on it, okay.**


	2. 4018

**A/N: Wahoo! My first update! And my first reviews! I barely even got the chance to use my computer to write this chapter, would have done this in two weeks but there was so much stuff going on in just three weeks. So yeah here it is.**

**P.S. This chapter has been edited**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon I only own the characters I made up in this story.**

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><p>Chapter 1: 4018<p>

There I was, hiding in a tree with a medium sized brown bag around my arm, waiting for the Charmeleon guard to walk by and continue his patrol route. Today I planed to escape this fancy prison of mine to hang out with my friends in town. Ever since the death of my father I was escaping from the palace more frequently just to isolate myself from everyone else there. Arthur of course increased the security around the palace because of my escapes but no matter how much guards or security systems he puts up, I always manage to slip by them. I like to think of the increasing security as more of a test to me, a test to see how well I have improved over the years.

When I turned thirteen I evolved into a Grovyle, which encouraged me to train myself to overcome all obstacles that came in my way. Over the years I've greatly improved my speed to become nothing but a green blur to everyone I run past. Since then, my mentor Haru (who is a sawk) has been training me by improving my strength and fighting techniques. Haru has improved my fighting so much; one day Haru set me up against three of the best palace guards and much to my surprise I beat them all within seconds without a single scratch on me.

Now that I am eighteen Haru trains me a little harder, knowing that I will always succeed in his tests. I don't really rely on moves as much as everyone else does, instead I rely more on my fists and fast reflexes. The only times I would use moves is when I absolutely have to, or when I'm just messing around.

_Okay, the coast seems clear now_. I leaped off of the tree that I was hiding in and dove into a shadow on the side of the palace, pressing my body against the wall. I took a quick peek around the corner and saw no guards around the front gate. All I needed to do now was climb over that hundred foot tall wall and I would be free, I just needed to be careful not to alert the whole place if I wanted to leave without any suspicion. I took a few quiet steps towards the front gate looking at every direction around me. _So far so good_, I thought.

"Hey! Down there!" a marshtomp yelled out from on top of the wall, alerting nearby guards of my presence. I should have been looking above me to avoid the guard's attention. I felt like an idiot at the moment, how could I make such a stupid mistake! I began to see other guards coming from all directions closing in on me. I quickly leaped towards the stone wall and began to scale the stone wall at an amazing pace; climbing was just something I was born to do. Pretty soon I was at the top of the wall and waiting for me up here was a marshtomp and a charmeleon who surrounded me from both sides, crouched in their fighting stances. "Please prince, don't make this difficult for us," the marshtomp said. There was barely any room for the three of us up here, which was an advantage for me because they wouldn't have any room to maneuver around me.

The charmeleon made the first move by attempting to tackle me to the ground; I however countered this by placing my arm around his neck and then threw him on top of the marshtomp as he was about to tackle me as well. The two guards were trying to recover from the attack, so I wasted no time in making my escape. I jumped off of the ledge and stuck my blades into a long red banner that was conveniently hanging on the outside part of the wall, slowing down my descent towards the ground. As soon as I made contact with the ground I ran towards the dirt path that led to town. As I was running, I turned around and saw about ten guards behind the iron bar gate trying to get it open.

"Sorry guys, maybe next time!" I shouted to them. With that said I continued my five mile journey towards town where my friends were waiting for me.

**Elana's P.O.V.**

I felt the harsh sunlight hit my face through my bedroom window. "Ugh, come on. Just give me five more minutes," I muttered, rather irritated. I kicked the green bed sheets off of me lumbered over to close the blinds on my window. After that task was done I jumped back into my bed, not bothering to pull the bed sheets back on me. No mater how hard I tried, I just couldn't go back to sleep. "Ugh. Might as well get the day started then," I said, stretching my legs. I should have learned from my past experiences why stretching in the morning was bad for my health, but unfortunately for me, I haven't yet. "Owee cramp!"

My name is Elana, Elana the gardevior. I recently just moved into Naru to start a new life of my own (no need to stress over details, 'kay?), and I have noticed that the season changes bring dramatic changes in temperature. Right now it's the summer time, and the last time I checked the temperature it was a hundred and one degrees; the summer has just started! So yeah, I plan on staying inside most of the summer. Today I planned on going into town to buy some food that would last me a week before I had to make another trip, and I was not looking forward on going out into the heat.

After I recovered from my little (painful) cramp experience I went inside my kitchen to get myself a bowl of oran flake cereal to stop my stomach from bothering me any longer. After I was done eating I got everything I needed for my trip into town; a basket to carry my stuff, a small pouch with at least three hundred gold coins in it, and a pecha berry as a snack on my way to town. I went out the front door of my cabin and felt the intense heat hit my face almost immediately. "Oh Arceus! I really need to get used to this heat," I said to myself. I'm serious though, how can the Pokémon who live here ignore this weather as if it was nothing! I turned around and shut the door behind me and locking it after it was closed shut. I took a long deep breath smelling the fresh forest scent. The scent of this forest always made me feel good about the choice I made about moving into the area.

The area I live in is quite peaceful; a small cabin made entirely out of wood that's in the middle of a really huge forest. Now, I know it's not smart to live in a wooden cabin that's out in the middle of a forest. That could possibly be in a middle of a huge forest fire due to the heat of this summer. But there are a few reasons why that won't happen. One, this forest hasn't caught on fire for years somehow (despite the number of fire types that lives in this region) and two, my house is fireproof. My cabin is not that far from town, its only like a mile walk from where I live. The cabin also so happens to be next to a dirt road that leads into to town. Strangely though, I don't really see that many Pokémon travel on it, which makes my walks to town a bit more peaceful.

I watched as a flock of Pidove flew overhead of me towards town, it felt just peaceful just standing here, one of the many reasons why I moved into Naru was because of the marvelous sights it had and this was one of them. But them the heat started to bother me, after I noticed that I was starting to sweat a little. _Better get going then_, I thought whilst taking out my pecha berry to eat. As I was savoring the sweet berry I began to walk on the dirt road that led to the town that lay ahead of me.

**Jason's P.O.V.**

There I stood, under a wooden arch that said that _welcome to New Jamestown_, in red paint at the top part of the arch. I probably should have mentioned the town I was heading towards earlier.

New Jamestown was the first place for the Pokémon who migrated from America to colonize in. It was given that name because everyone thought of the town as a start of a new beginning, a new beginning for a new life, a new beginning for the Pokémon in this new world, and a new beginning for a new government. Another reason why it was given that name was because Jamestown was the first place to be colonized at America, so we thought passing on that name would be a nice idea.

Naru has been in a lot of wars but the first war was the one against the ones who brought them here in the first place. Apparently there were some rules that the Colonists didn't agree on when they moved here. So you know what happened? Revolution. Kind of ironic that Americas own colony revolted against them, knowing that America did the same thing to their rulers thousands of years ago. So yeah, Naru became their own government after the war, and they have become more powerful since, but today America and Naru are now on friendlier terms.

I gazed at the town from on top of the hilltop where the arch stood. The town looked somewhat peaceful in the distance. The size of New Jamestown was pretty decent, its residents were mostly merchants and nobles. But there are gangs that run through the streets, which is a little problem this town has; other than that New Jamestown is a pretty peaceful town. I took off the bag I had around my arm and set it on the ground. Inside the bag was a brown cloak, without hesitation I quickly put it on before anyone saw me.

Being a prince had its advantages and disadvantages; one of those disadvantages was the attention that I drew. I just hate being in the center of attention all the time. The first time I escaped the palace was the first time I took a trip into town, I had no idea what I was doing in the first place, but I think I just wanted to be as far away from everyone as possible. As soon as I laid foot into town, the paparazzi were already chasing me back home. I learned from this mistake by putting on a disguise I found in my dad's wardrobe, though I don't know what he was doing with it in the first place. Come to think of it, I don't think I've never seen him wear something like that.

After I put on my cloak I took a look around if there were anyone around. _Nope, nobody here_, after that thought, I went through the arch into town.

The streets were filled with Pokémon of all types, it was sort of difficult to get through the crowds that got in my way, but I managed to get through. There were merchants selling goods from stands, nobles trying to find their way home through the crowd, and guards patrolling through the streets. My destination was a tavern not far from where I was, the tavern's name was called Anthony's. Anthony's is my friend's favorite hangout, I don't know why, but it is.

One day I decided to stay a little late there after my friends left and the owner Anthony (who is a seviper, by the way) told me to leave when it was closing time. A chair had somehow fallen over earlier, unfortunately I had to be too lazy to notice the chair so of course I tripped over it. When I fell over my cloak somehow came off of me, revealing my true identity to anyone left in the tavern. Luckily for me Anthony was the only Pokémon in there to witness it, but you know what he did? He panicked. He kept on apologizing for what happened over and over again. Another thing I hate about being a prince was the amount of respect I got from everyone; I would rather get shot at than get the respect I get. After I got Anthony to calm down I made him promise not to tell anyone who I really was under the disguise I wore.

"Finally," I said after arriving at the front door of the tavern. The tavern was located in the middle of a narrow street; this street however is less crowed so it's a bit more peaceful. I pushed open the wooden door and saw only a few Pokémon inside eating breakfast. In the far left corner of the tavern I saw my three friends sitting in a table booth having a conversation.

Over the years my friends have changed as well and not only in appearance. Pax has evolved from a pidove to an unfezant, and just recently he's been trying to get into the air force to make a difference when Naru enters its next war. But the real reason why Pax wants to join the air force is because his father was in it before he died, and he was a big war hero. Leo evolved from a murkrow to a honchkrow, not much has changed from him other than the fact that he likes to pick a fight with everyone he sees, and you know what, I think he's become more of an ass over the years. Drake evolved from a torchic to a blaziken, he's two years older than me and he has been training a lot lately. Drake has turned a bit more violent ever since he was forced to fight his way out of a gang encounter, after the fight Drake thought that he didn't need his peace lessons anymore. Drake's father of course didn't like what his son believed in, so he left him. I know it seems harsh but it turned Drake into a stronger fighter. Thank Arceus he stopped talking like a hippie. All three of my friends live by themselves and they always have got my back.

They are some of the few who knew who I really was under my disguise; I trust them with my secret just as they trust me with their secrets.

"Hey, what up guys?" I said as I approached them.

They stopped their conversation and looked up to me. Drake was the first to greet me

"Hey Ja-."

"Shh. Damn it Drake do you want everyone to know who I am?" I cut him off in a whisper loud enough for my friends to hear.

"Okay, sorry man," Drake apologized.

Several hours passed once I sat down with my friends, enjoying the pecha berry drinks that Anthony brought us about every twenty minutes. The drinks were very sweet with a little tang of sour in it. We talked about what had happened over the past week, nothing really interesting if you were wondering. Other than the fact that Pax flew into another window just yesterday, everything was pretty much normal. Then Leo struck up an interesting conversation.

"Hey, have you guys heard about what the Northern Region has been up to?" Leo asked after we joked about Pax's terrible flying skills.

"Oh Arceus, not that," I said in an annoyed tone. At the palace, all that Arthur has been talking about was the Northern Region threat, and frankly I am tired of hearing news about them.

"Yeah I heard that they are mobilizing their forces for something," Drake said

"I heard that there's been a lot of stuff going on in their fleet," Pax said.

"Guys, I'm pretty sure it's nothing," I said.

"Well guess what? There's some news about a sub being spotted off the coast… and it's wearing a blue banner."

"You serious?" asked Pax.

"Yeah, I'm serious," Leo said in a… well, serious tone of course.

Okay, let me tell you about the Northern region so that you don't get confused. Yes, their flag was blue, but it had a picture of a blue shield with a white cross on it. Pokémon from the Northern Region and Pokémon from Naru don't get along very well. The Pokémon who live in the Northern Region were Pokémon that migrated from Russia. They are mostly water and ice types, and they have the largest population out of all the other regions out there. Their leaders have had their eye out for Naru. I don't know why but there's something about Naru that they want. Naru has been at war with the Northern Region several times and we always win; sometimes we think of the worst of what would've happened if they had won even one war against us. I guess revenge is what their leaders are after. They don't believe in mercy, they will not give up any land without a fight, they will fight to the last drop of blood they have in them, and they are the only ones known to withstand the harsh climate they live in. I've never been there before, but I've heard that the Northern Region is the coldest place out of all the other cold regions. I know that I would never travel there in a million years.

"Okay guys look, I'm going to leave before it gets late," I said after drinking the last of my pecha berry juice.

"C'mon, you don't want to stay with your friends?" Leo said.

"Nah, I just don't want to get nagged to death by my mother."

"Well good luck with that," Pax said.

I said my goodbyes to my friends and exited the tavern. I looked up to the dark sky and saw the full moon at its highest, shining with a marvelous silver glow. _Great, my mom is going to nag at me now_, I thought, if I'm out this late then she will always worry about me. I quickly made my way through the streets of the town; I took note that the streets were not as busy as they were in the morning, which was good for me. Soon enough I was on top of the hill where the arch stood. I pulled out my medium sized bag and took off my brown cloak, revealing my true identity. As I was about to stuff the cloak inside the bag, I caught a glimpse of red inside it. I placed the cloak to my left and slowly pulled out the mysterious item. It was a small red cloth, but not just any other red cloth, this one used to be my red cape.

When I evolved into a grovyle the red cape that I wore was just too small for me, I was kind of happy to know how much bigger I'd gotten. I hated that cape so much that I wanted to just rip it to shreds, although I couldn't because of three reasons. One my mom would kill me if I did rip it to shreds. Secondly I've grown a little attached to it because of all the memories it had. Thirdly it used to be my dads. Now I tied it around my neck as if it were a bandana to keep the memories it had with me, but mainly because I think I look awesome with it like that.

I held the cape/bandana in the air in front of me, thinking about my past with it. Strangely though I couldn't come up with any memories, the only memories I had were the ones after I evolved into a grovyle…and that one childhood memory, the one memory on my tenth birthday. I snapped myself out of my thoughts and wiped away a tear that was about to fall from my eye. I looked at the cape once more and tied it around my neck as if it were a bandana; I smiled at the sight of it on my chest. "Oh crap, I got to go now," I said whilst quickly putting the cloak back inside the bag. In no time I was back on my way towards the palace by using the dirt road that led to it.

**Elana's P.O.V.**

I could barely see a thing in this dark! The only light out here in this forest that could help me find my way back home was the moonlight. I had just left town with a basket full of berries and other neat stuff, and then I was trying to find my way back home by using the dirt road. I'm kind of confused now, in the morning it was crazy hot, now it's freezing cold, I don't understand the weather here. Right now I guess I'm near my house, I should be arriving there in a few seconds. I suddenly heard some rustling in the bushes to my right; I quickly turned to it in response. The rustling ceased as soon as I turned to it and pretty soon I heard more rustling behind me. As soon as turned around to see the source of it, the bush that caught my attention before began rustling again. I had a bad feeling about it.

Within seconds four tyrogue and a hitmontop jumped out of their hiding places, surrounding me with menacing faces on them.

"Well, look what we have here guys, hehe, you know it's not safe to go out at night, especially when we're around," the hitmontop said with a chuckle; he was obviously the group's leader. I don't know what this group was or what their intentions were but I quickly read their minds to answer those questions. I soon found out that their intentions were to steal anything I had on me. _Well I'm not going to let that happen, I am _not_ going to make another trip into town in the summer heat! _I quickly focused on my psychic powers to put an invisible barrier around me, preparing myself for the fight to come.

"Hey! Leave the girl alone!" a new voice said. We all turned to the source of the new voice to see a grovyle standing on the dirt road. I was pretty sure that one of us would have noticed him standing there, but we must have been really unaware of our surroundings to not notice. I noticed that the grovyle had a brown bag slumped over his back and he was wearing a red bandana around his neck.

"What?! Y-you again!" the hitmontop said in an agitated tone. "When will you leave us alone?"

"When you guys learn some manners," the grovyle said.

"Grr… get him!" as soon as the hitmontop gave out the order his tyrogue minions sprang into action, two of them jumped into the air using Hi Jump Kick while the other two charged at him with their fists pulled back.

The grovyle dropped his brown bag and crouched into a fighting stance waiting for his opponents to come at him. I don't know why but his fighting stance looked somewhat familiar to me. When the first two tyrogue using Hi Jump Kick came at him, the grovyle just simply stepped to the side, making the two tyrogue miss and crash into the ground.

When the other two tyrogue came close enough they unleashed a flurry of fists, but surprisingly all they hit was nothing but air, the grovyle managed to quickly dodge every attack they threw at him. Amazingly he managed to grab one of the Tyrouge's fists in midair and flipped him over his back and throwing him onto the floor with intense force, making a cloud of dust rise and surround the downed tyrogue. Before the Grovyle's last remaining opponent got a chance to attack him while his back was turned, the grovyle quickly turned around and stopped the Tyrouge's attack in midair as well. After the grovyle did that he grabbed the Tyrouge's neck and threw him onto the floor besides him as well.

"C'mon you guys, you're making this too easy for me," the grovyle taunted.

After he said that the two tyrouge that had crashed earlier were back on their feet ready to fight again. The tyrouge closer to him made the first move by charging at him with a Mach Punch, but the trovyle managed to catch even that ultra fast move. As soon as the tyrouge put up a face of surprise, he was thrown onto his nearby ally.

"Anything new?" the grovyle asked.

Now the hitmontop stepped forward with a pissed off look on his face, the two of them were now staring at each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. The hitmontop made the first move by reaching behind, pulling out a knife and throwing it at the grovyle with precision striking him in his right shoulder. Even the Grovyle was surprised by this stunt, he just grinned. The hitmontop quickly dove in and used Rapid Spin, making him look like a spinning top with a body. Remarkably, the grovyle managed to grab one of his legs, ceasing the Hitmontop's spinning and making him dangle in the air. The grovyle smiled before throwing his opponent into a nearby tree, with him slowly sliding down the tree, headfirst onto the ground.

Soon after the tyrogue finished struggling to get up they took one last look at the Grovyle; I felt their sudden fear as they looked into his eyes. Within seconds they ran away in all directions screaming in fear, abandoning their leader. Soon the hitmontop was on his feet and looked around for his minions, realizing that he was now alone with me and the grovyle he did the same as the others, unaware of the direction he was heading.

After all that madness was done I made the invisible barrier disappear and walked up to the one who saved me.

"Thank you for helping me, I really uh…," I paused.

"What, is something wrong?" he asked.

"Um… you still have a knife in your shoulder," I said, pointing at his right shoulder.

"Huh, well what do you know, I do," he said calmly.

"Um. Doesn't that hurt?" I asked, confused.

"Oh yeah, it does hurt, it hurts like hell but I'm not supposed to show pain." He certainly was an odd Pokémon.

"Uh, let me take that out for you." After I said that I concentrated my psychic power on pulling out the knife in his shoulder.

"No thanks its al- AHHH fudge!" the grovyle screamed as I pulled out the knife. I then threw the bloodstained knife as far as I can into the forest hoping that no one would find it anytime soon, if ever.

"Uh sorry, I thought that you weren't supposed to show pain," I apologized.

"I am! Sigh… Well, thanks for taking that thing out sooner."

"Uh… your welcome?" after I said that he started walking down the dirt road. "Wait!" I called out, making him turn around. "What's your name?"

"You're serious? You don't know my name?" he asked in disbelief.

"Um no, should I?" He smiled before replying.

"The name's Jason. Your's?" he asked.

"My name is Elana." I replied.

"Well see you around Elana," he said with a smile. After that he continued to wherever he was going. I wondered if I would ever see him again.

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><p><strong>AN: So you guys liked this? Anyways I wrote more than five thousand words for this chapter, and by the way I should have told you guys earlier but don't forget to Favorite this. I don't know if I need a beta reader right now to help me, but maybe in my next update I will decide.**


	3. Just Another Day In The Palace

**A/N: Okay I was a little impatient when I got this chapter done, I wanted to update this story in three weeks but yeah look what happened. I felt so sick this week, my throat still feels a little sore… but that's not going to stop me from giving you guys this chapter to read. So anyways here it is… but first a disclaimer.**

**P.S. This chapter has been edited**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon I just own the characters I have in the story.**

Chapter 2: Just another day in the palace

**Jason's P.O.V.**

"What the hell is wrong with you Jason, you're supposed to stay at the palace! How hard is that?" Arthur yelled.

"Oh Arceus shut up already," I said. Yup I'm back at the palace, right next to the elevator door waiting for it to pick me up. Right now Arthur was… well I'm not really paying any attention to him but he sure is annoying me, luckily for me my mom isn't here to annoy me even more.

The elevator doors finally opened for me, but before I could set foot in it, I saw my mother waiting for me inside it with a frown on her face.

"I'm taking the stairs," I said flatly.

"No you won't, get in here now," my mom said. Arthur just motioned me to get inside with her. I sighed and obeyed them. When I got inside the cramped room my mother pushed the button with the number fifty on it. The elevator doors slowly closed and began to rise to our destination. "Jason this has to stop immediately."

"Please mom not again," I said in an annoyed tone.

"Jason I'm serious, every time you escape the palace you worry me even more."

"Mom I'm pretty sure that I can take care of myself now."

"Jason please I-"

"You can trust me to go out by myself."

"Jason you-"

"I mean really mom, when will you learn to trust me?"

"Jason!" my mom yelled. She sighed before continuing "Jason, things are starting to get dangerous around here, there's gangs running loose, there's a Northern region threat, and who knows what else is out there," she said in a calm voice.

"Mom! I can take care of myself okay!" after I said that the elevator doors opened for us and I bolted out, heading towards my end of the hallway. As soon as I entered my room I shut the door behind me.

I just don't understand it! I've escaped from my palace hundreds of times and return back home every time, and she still doesn't trust me. There must be some way I could convince her, but I'm just too tired to think of a way right now.

I walked towards my window, gazing at the wondrous night sky. Sometimes I just wish that I was never born in a royal family, just to a normal family that lives a normal lifestyle. Hold on a second I just noticed something! My bag! Where's my bag? Crap I left it back on that dirt road. Maybe the Gardevoir that I met earlier named Elana has it with her; I have to find out if she does!

But before I got the chance to leave my room, I let out a loud yawn. Maybe I will get some sleep first and then get my bag tomorrow; I don't think she would be curious of what's inside it anyways.

* * *

><p><strong>Elana's P.O.V.<strong>

'_A brown cloak? What's a brown cloak doing inside his bag?_' I have so many questions buzzing around my head that I wanted to ask him. Well I'm sure that he would have noticed it missing by now. Now my only problem right now is to find out where Jason lives so I can return it to him. Oh well, I guess I will return it to him tomorrow, right now I want to sleep.

Right now I'm at the front door of my home, just finished going through Jason's bag. I know I shouldn't have done that but that bag just kept on staring at me. I'm a really curious person okay; I just can't stand not knowing something. Now I was rummaging through my basket looking for the key to my house. "Aha here it is," I said whilst pulling out the key. I unlocked the door to my house and locked it when I got inside. I then set everything I had on the kitchen counter, putting the berries in a large fruit bowl, chips and other junk food inside a cabinet, food that would spoil inside my fridge, and the bag I just left there. As soon as all of that was done, I jumped into bed thinking about what has happened so far.

That Jason reminds me of someone I once knew… someone I… no I'm going into that. But he looks so much like him, he acts like him too. No I need to stop thinking about this stuff. I then drifted off into the deep sleep that I've wanted for so long after a long tiring day.

* * *

><p><strong>Jason's P.O.V.<strong>

I shielded my eyes from the sunlight that came through my window. Ugh is it morning already? Yes it is. I kicked the bed sheets off of my bed and rubbed my eyes. Today I don't plan on escaping the palace to hang out with my friends because today is sort of like a training day for me. The only thing I like being taught here is the fighting lessons they give me.

After a few minutes of trying to decide whether or not to sleep a little more, I got off of my bed and exited my room to find my way to the dinning room. Yeah I could just get someone to bring food to my room but that would seem lazy of me, so I would rather go and get it myself. Now I was right in front of the elevator door, but I didn't feel like waiting in a small room for an hour. So I took the teleporter that was next to it. In case you haven't noticed it yet I'm a very impatient guy okay.

The teleporters had just been recently installed inside the entire palace, there's one on every floor. I don't exactly know how these things work but all I care is that I get to my destination faster. The teleporters are blue circular pads that look like if they are made of some kind of crystal, they also give off a strange blue glow. Man I can't even imagine how much wiring it took to get these things linked to one another, through the entire palace.

I stepped onto the teleporter pad and pressed a button that said '_dinning room._' Soon the blue light that the pad gave off grew brighter and brighter until I had to close my eyes so I wouldn't have go blind. I felt an electrical current go through my body; yeah it's a weird feeling to be teleported. Within seconds the light returned to normal and the eclectic current going through me ceased. I opened my eyes to see myself in a different area. I was now in the dining room, and from the looks of it nobody was up yet.

The dinning room is a very large room in the shape of a rectangle, the ceiling for this room is also high as the ballrooms ceiling. On the sides of the room there were small tables lined up in one row with trays of various types' food. It was sort of like a buffet here. The chiefs are probably the first ones awake in the morning, making breakfast for everyone who lives here, who are guards, high ranking Pokemon, and the teachers who are trying to teach me how to become a good king. On one end of the room is the double wooden doorway and on the other end of the room was the teleporter I came out of. In the center of the room is one very large rectangular wooden table that stretches across the whole room.

In a few minutes I got myself a plate of pancakes topped with several oran berries, with a crispy hash brown on the side. After I was done with my breakfast, Pokemon began entering the room to eat, so I figured that I should go and start my training for the day.

I soon found myself in the enormous courtyard of mines, there were groups of guards jogging around it, water Pokemon watering the plants, bladed Pokemon trimming the trees, and oh what do you know guards on top of the wall keeping an eye on me. I walked a little further out into the court yard until I saw a Sawk on a blue training mat waiting for my arrival. On the training mat there was a Machoke, a Charmeleon, and a Magmar sparing with each other. These three are palace guards who were inspired to fight like me the last time I kicked their butts.

The Sawk waiting for me is my mentor named Haru, he's trained other Pokemon in the past and his last student was my father. He's a very interesting guy, he's supposed to be retired now but he too made a promise to my father and that promise is to make me as strong as him. My father and Haru both developed a new type of fighting style that is only known to few Pokemon as well as myself, although I'm still trying to get hang of the more advanced moves. They both combined the fighting style of a Lucario and the fighting style of close quarters combat; it's a combat style that humans once used in case if the fight got too close to them. So far the new fighting style proves to be very useful, especially when I'm trying to escape a group guards trying to keep me in this prison. There's not really a name for this fighting style yet but I'm pretty sure it will come up soon.

"Ah Jason there you are. Now shall we get started?" Haru said as I approached the group.

"Yeah I'm ready," I replied. A few hours had passed and the training session was getting pretty intense. First we ran three laps around the courtyard, then we learned a few new fighting techniques, after that we began sparing with each other.

"Jason, are you up for another test?" Haru asked.

"Huh? Oh yeah I'm always ready," I grinned.

"Good, you three get ready," Haru said whilst motioning for the other three Pokemon. They complied and got into position. I was positioned at the center of the mat while everyone else was positioned around me, all except Haru who was at the edge of the mat. My opponents all had eager faces on them; they probably thought that this was the day that they finally take me down, well bad news for them I'm not going down today. "Ready?" Haru asked us, we all nodded to his question. "Go," He calmly said.

As if on cue, all three Pokemon closed in on me, attempting to get a hold of me. I however dodged their move by jumping up into the air and landing on the Machokes head. I then bounced off of the Machokes head landing behind him. The small group was now in a state of confusion of what has just happened. I took advantage of their confusion by kicking the Machokes knee from behind, making him fall slightly allowing me to grab the Machoke in a chokehold. The Charmeleon attempted to free his ally by attacking me from my side, but when he dove in I kicked the Machokes back making him land ontop of the Charmelon. After that the Magmar caught me off guard and put me in his chokehold, but before he could do anything to me I flipped over him then elbowed his back. I noticed the other two were now getting up so I grabbed the stunned Magmar and threw him onto my other opponents.

"Good job Jason, you did well again," Haru said. I then walked up to the pile of opponents on the ground, all struggling to catch their breath. I held out my hand towards them.

"Need a hand?" I asked. The Magmar was the first to look up, he was too tired to say anything so he nodded and took my hand. One by one I pulled the guards off the ground, the Charmeleon who was at the bottom of the pile looked pretty crushed when I came to him.

"Alright everyone, training session is over, return to the palace and get some rest," we all nodded and walked off to the palace, by the time we were halfway there my opponents were still trying to catch their breath. They all had disappointed expressions on their faces and they kept looking up at me as if they had something to say, the Charmeleon was the first to speak up.

"Jason, how do you, manage to, beat us every time?" He asked whilst panting.

"Yeah how do you, do it so fast," the Machoke asked.

"Well you know how the fighting technique combines close quarters combat and the fighting style of a Lucario?" I said, they answered by nodding. "Well there's a reason why. The Lucario part helps you become more calm, more swift, and gives you a solid defense during a fight. The close quarters part requires you to make split second decisions during a fight, decisions that can not only save yourself, but other Pokemon you don't want to get hurt, especially if your in a situation where the guy in front of you is holding a gun. You have to think fast to win."

"Hmm, I think I understand now," the Magmar said.

"We will keep that in mind next time," the Charmeleon said.

We were now at the front of the palace, it was nearing sunset so I had time to kill. Suddenly an important thought came into my head, my bag! "Uh you guys go on ahead I have to uh… take care of some stuff."

"Alright just don't escape again," the Charmeleon chuckled. Soon the group was inside and out of sight, as for me I casually walked towards the front gate, seeing no guards around; yes I checked the wall this time. I quickly scaled the stone wall until I was at the top; once I got there I took one more look around me to see if there were any guards patrolling near me. Everything is still clear, good, I then quickly climbed my way down until I felt the grass came into contact with my feet. I turned back to check if there were anybody patrolling one last time, nope I'm still good. I waved goodbye and I was off to find Elana… if I knew where she lived.

* * *

><p>I was at the dirt road that led into town, thinking over the possibilities of where she might be. Okay if I met her out here late at night then that means that she was probably heading back home, either that or she loves shopping late, no it looked like if she already made a trip into town. But if she was heading back home, why haven't I seen a single house out here! I'm pretty sure that I would have noticed one out here… oh wait there it is. It was a wooden cabin that was partially hidden by the trees surrounding it, there was also a mailbox that was positioned near the edge of the dirt road and on the side of the mailbox that said '<em>Elana,<em>' I'm pretty sure that I would have noticed at least that.

I really hope that she haven't checked my bag yet, I really don't want to answer any questions right now I just want to go to bed early. I followed the dirt path that led towards the front door of the cabin, when I came at the front door I made a few sharp knocks on it and waited for a response. However the response was that I heard a shriek and several objects falling on a floor, some sounded like metalic objects bouncing off of it, some sounded like if a bucket of paint was just poured on top someone's head.

"Um, hello?" I called.

"Just wait I'm coming!" a feminine voice said. Within seconds the door was opened and standing in front of me was a Gardevior covered in blue paint, some of it was dripping off her head. "Um, hi," she said.

"… I'm sorry did I interrupt you with something?" I asked.

"Uh nope, I mean well yes, but it wasn't really important."

"You're Elana right?"

"Yup that's me, and you must be Jason."

"Yeah that's right. Look I was wondering if you had-"

"Oh sorry, come in," she said before I could finish. I shruged and walked inside her cabin. We were in a small hallway that barely had enough room for us. There was nothing inside this hallway but a wooden door to the left of us. "I will be back in a few minutes, I just need to get cleaned up okay." But before I could say anything she quickly entered the room that was to the left of us. I sighed and decided that I might as well check the place out.

As I walked towards the end of the hallway I saw a rectangular room with a glass wall in front of me. When I entered it I noticed that this room had different areas to it. The living room area was to the left of me, there was a large flat screen TV on a black TV stand and about six feet away from it is a brown leather couch that looked like if it had enough room for three to be on it. To my right is the dinning area and the kitchen area, both of these areas had their half of the room. I then walked towards the right side of the room until I was in the center facing it, to inspect it further. In my right was the kitchen, it had a white tile floor and a counter that separated it from the dinning room. All the dinning room had was just a large wooden table that had six chairs surrounding it.

The Cabin was pretty small but everything looked nice enough. How long has it been since Elana left to clean up? Hmm it's only been like five minutes. As I looked towards the living room area something small caught my eye, on the TV stand there was a small picture frame standing there. After I walked up to it I picked it up so see who was in it. In the picture frame was Elana with her arms around a Grovyle, both smiling at each other. It was strange though, the Grovyle looked a lot like me, but this Grovyle had several scars on his body as if he had been cut several times, he also had a scar running down the left side of his face. I also took note of the background in the picture, it looked like if the picture was taken at a desert. As I looked closer there was other Pokemon in the background and they wore the uniform that Narus soldiers would wear.

I should have mentioned earlier that red was Narus color. Also Narus banner was a red shield with a golden lion in the center of it. The guards and soldiers of Naru always wore black ballistic vests and red armbands that indicated their ranks as their uniform.

"Um, what are you looking at?" Elana asked from behind me.

"What? Oh uh nothing!" I said whilst putting the picture frame back in its place.

It seemed that Elana was done cleaning her self, water was now dripping off of her hair instead of paint, and she also had a white towel over her shoulder. I then noticed something odd about Elana, she didn't look like any ordinary Gardevoir, I didn't notice it at first but as I took a closer look at her I noticed that she had sapphire blue eyes! I have never heard of a Gardevoir having blue eyes, I've not even heard of a shiny Gardevoir having blue eyes, only gold.

"Is something wrong?" Elana asked. I felt my cheeks grow suddenly warm after I noticed that I've been staring at her for the past couple of seconds.

"Nothing! I mean, yeah nothing is wrong, it's just that your eyes are different."

"Different?"

"Yeah I've never seen a Gardevoir with blue eyes. Why do you have blue eyes?" I asked.

"Oh, well you're the first one to notice, thanks."

"Your welcome?"

"Well there have been members of my family being shinys, the last one to be a shiny was my great grandmother, so I guess she must've passed on to me."

"But you're not completely shiny." I said in a confused voice.

"Yeah I know, so I guess I'm part shiny," Elana said with a smile.

"Okay then. Hey is that you in this picture," I said while pointing at the picture frame I had a moment ago.

"Yeah, why?"

"Well I was wondering where this picture was taken, it looks familiar to me."

"Oh, well that picture was taken at the Anadu region." She answered.

The Anadu region was a really big place to be in. The region is very mountainous; the whole region is almost like a desert, and is extremely hot. There had been a war just recently between Naru and Anadu, I know, Naru should stop picking fights with everyone. We became victorious when they found out that they were short on supplies to continue the war. The war took place about three months ago if you were wondering. I believe the reason why we went to war was because Anadu has been stealing goods from the trade routes we had with other regions.

"Did you fight in the war between Naru and Anadu?" I asked.

"Well no I didn't really fight, I was in charge of healing injures, sort of like a medic if you think of it," She said.

"Oh okay… and is he someone close you know," I asked whist pointing at the Grovyle in the picture.

"I-I don't want to talk about him," she stuttered. "Wait a minute why are you here again?" she quickly said, changing the subject.

"Oh right. I was wondering if you had a brown bag from yesterday, its mine."

"Oh yeah its right over here, follow me," she said. She led me to the kitchen area of the room and went rummaging through the cabinets searching for the bag. "It's in here somewhere, just wait… aha here it is," she said while pulling out my brown bag. She held it in front of me so I could take it, but before I could even touch it she pulled it back, hiding it behind her back. "Okay now it's my turn to ask questions," she said with glee.

"Hey what the heck!"

"I promise that I would give it back to you if you answer my questions. Okay?" she said with a smile.

"Okay fine just make it quick!"

"Okay well…" She said whilst pulling out the brown cloak in the bag. "What is this?" she asked.

"Its uh, it's a cloak what else do you think it is."

"I know that. What I mean is why do you need a cloak?"

"Well, because… I like cloaks." I said. Elana was now squinting, as if she was trying to see something. Then I caught a glimpse of something in her eyes, and I swear that I saw her eyes glowed pink for a second. '_Its okay, she obviously doesn't know who I really am. Just as long as she doesn't know I'm safe._' After that thought I realized what she was doing.

She ceased squinting and said "ah read that!" crap. "Who are you then?"

"Why should I tell you?" I said.

"Because if you don't, then you won't get your bag back. All you have to do is tell me," okay now she's starting to piss me off! I hesitated before replying.

"Okay fine! Since I'm in a rush I will tell you!" I said. It was already sunset so I didn't want anybody to find out I've been gone, especially after yesterday. "If I tell you will you please not tell anyone?"

"I promise I won't tell anyone, it's not like I have anyone to talk to anyways."

"What? Never mind. Okay look…" I hesitated before continuing. "… I'm the prince of Naru." I finally said.

"Huh? No your not, I heard that the prince stays at his palace like a loner the whole time."

"I'm telling the truth! The reason why I have a cloak is so nobody will know who I really am when I go out into the town! I've been doing it for eight years!" we stood there for awhile, Elana giving me a look of disbelief. All I want is just my bag, is that too hard to ask for? Finally she said.

"Okay I believe you."

"What, Really?" I said disbelievingly.

"Well I don't sense you lying to me anymore, so yeah."

"Okay… can I have my bag back?"

"Oh sure," she then finally handed the bag to me.

"Thanks," I said after I received the bag from her. "Okay its getting late I have to go now," I said while heading towards the front door of her cabin.

"Wait!" Elana called out, I looked back before I could place my hand on the doorknob. "I-I want to know more about you. Like the place you live in. Is it nice?"

I smirked before replying "You would know that it's terrible if you lived my life."

"Huh? But I heard that it's really nice."

"Not if you lived your whole life there."

"When can I see you again?" she asked.

"Soon okay, sorry but I really have to go. See you later," I said while leaving her cabin.

"Bye!" she called out. Within seconds I was out of sight.

* * *

><p>I was almost at the front of the palace. It was very dark and cold tonight. I just hope that no one has discovered that I escaped again. But now my thoughts were now on Elana. She was a little strange, it seems that she is positive most of the time. What's also strange about her is that she's part shiny. Although those blue sapphire eyes did made her look a little pretty. Okay what am I saying… she's beautiful!<p>

My thoughts were soon interrupted when I heard a poof sort of sound behind me. I quickly turned around to only see nothing. I thought that I must have been imagining things. As I turned around to continue my way towards the palace, some weird ghost looking thing was floating in front of me; it almost made my heart skip a beat. I had never seen this Pokemon before. It had a shadowy black body, the top of its head looked like if white smoke was coming off of its head, its arms were skinny and its hands looked like if they were claws. It had light blue eyes and the whole body looked like if it was a tattered cloak, and the jagged edges around its neck were colored red.

"Jason… is that you?" it asked. Even its voice sounded creepy. Its voice sounded eerie, it kind of sounded a bit echoic.

"W-who are you?" I asked, keeping my distance away from the mysterious Pokemon.

"It has been a long time since the last time we met Jason, I haven't seen you since your birthday," it said.

"I-I'm sorry but I don't know you."

"Hmm, this was expected. I knew they would do this to you if they saw me with you. I am terribly sorry Jason."

"Wait who's they?" I asked.

"I guess we can't catch up on old times then," it said sullenly, ignoring my question. With that said it turned around and sank to the ground, turning into a… shadow? The shadow then quickly dove into a bush, leaving me alone, confused.

What Pokemon was that? We met before? On my birthday? Who was they and what exactly did they do to me?

**A/N: Good right? Do you think you know what that Pokemon is? I feel like I did a bad job at describing Elanas home. Well I still haven't decided whether or not I need a beta reader yet. Alright I will be updating the progress on the chapters I'm working on in my profile page. And after this update my time limit will be three weeks, so yeah I will update as soon as I can, If I don't update within three weeks then start telling me to hurry up.**


	4. This Isn't A Date!

**A/N: Time for another update hooray! I feel so proud of myself now that I have been updating every week. I've noticed that the hits for this story keep doubling after every update so I want to say thanks to all of you for reading this; it means so much to me.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon I just own the characters I have in this story.**

Chapter 3: This isn't a date!

**Jasons P.O.V.**

I was in the library, trying to get information about the mysterious Pokemon that appeared to me late last night, with my brown bag over my shoulder. It was early in the morning by the way, well five thirty in the morning to be exact. I planed on going into town today but before I leave I wanted to find out what that Pokemon was.

"Nothing in this one either." I said whilst putting the book I was reading onto the pile of books on a table. I've read about twenty books already and they all had no information on what I wanted. But how am I supposed to find something that I don't even know? Maybe it was a legendary. I then searched a bookshelf for anything that had information on the legendary Pokemon. "Aha here's one." I then pulled out a book that was titled "Legendary Origins." I quickly flipped through the pages, keeping an eye out for anything that looked like what I saw last night. Unfortunately I was disappointed yet again to find nothing. Well I think I should get going now, I doubt that I would get anything here, plus if I want to leave this place now was a good time, there were barely any guards out this early.

I stepped onto the blue teleporter pad that was in the back of the library and pressed a button that said "Front door." Again that weird electric current ran through my body, as well as the light getting brighter and brighter. Pretty soon the electric current ceased and the blue light stopped getting brighter and returned to normal, I was now next to the elevator on the first floor. I exited the palace through the front door and checked if there were any guards around. Nope, no guards in sight. I quietly crept towards the front gate of the wall, careful of my surroundings.

"He's making a run for it again!" a familiar looking Marshtomp said from on top of the wall. Dammit! I didn't check above me again! Almost immediately guards were closing in on me, so I did what I did last time… scale the wall, leaving my pursuers on the ground. As soon as I set foot on top of the stone wall I was greeted by two familiar faces, the same Charmeleon and Marshtomp from before and we were in the same positions again (no that is not the same Charmeleon from yesterday). "I'm only going to tell you once prince, get down from here and-" unfortunately that was all he could say before I kneed him in his stomach, making him bend over trying to recover from the blow. In the corner of my eye I saw the Charmeleon diving in to tackle me; I dodged this move with ease by jumping on the edge of the wall while carefully holding on to my bag, making him tackle his ally to the ground. The Charmeleon soon got back up and attempted to grab me only to miss as I jumped off of the edge, landing behind him. Before the Charmeleon could turn around, I grabbed him in a choke hold then threw him onto the downed Marshtomp. I thought that I was home free after that but when I turned around to jump off on the other side of the wall, there stood in front of me someone I thought I would never think would try to stop me. It was Arthur. I didn't even notice him sneak up to me.

"Jason I'm warning you, give up now or else." Arthur threatened.

"Please Arthur don't do this."

"Jason… turn around now."

"I'm sorry but I have people expecting me. So my answer is no."

"Then you leave me no choice, just to let you know you made me do this." With that said he immediately threw a fist enveloped in a ball of fire to my stomach, sending me to the floor. I was amazed at the incredible strength he had, what also amazed me was that was the first time in awhile someone actually landed a hit on me.

'This should be exciting' I thought with a smirk. I quickly dodged another Fire Punch by rolling to the side away from him, making him create a fist sized hole where I was a moment ago. I quickly got back on my feet, crouching back into my fighting stance. For a moment I saw fire build up inside his mouth and I knew what his next move would be, it was a Flamethrower. I dodged his move by dropping to the floor in a split second before he released the fire that was building up inside his mouth. After he was done using Flamethrower, I quickly got back up and ran up to him, delivering a punch under his jaw, making him stumble back a couple of steps. I then performed a swift leg sweep on him, making him fall flat on his back.

I then noticed more guards coming towards me from both directions of the wall; I knew I would be overwhelmed within seconds so I had to make my escape immediately. I jumped off of the wall plummeting towards the ground at a great speed.

"Oh Arceus!" I said as I felt a sharp pain go through my legs as I landed. I had to get away from here before they had a chance to get me. But as I attempted to run away, the sharp pain ran through my right leg as it did when I fell on the ground. I think I must have broken my leg. I was now slowly limping away from the place, if they opened the front gate now they would definitely catch me. Pretty soon I was out of sight and on my way towards the town.

Now I'm definitely home free. Now all I have to do now is find a doctor to check my leg to see if it's anything serious. Now normally I wouldn't break my leg when I jump off a great height, but jumping off a hundred foot wall without anything to slow my decent is another story. Hold a sec, what's that noise? I hear, shouting… coming from behind me. It's the palace guards! And it looks like they are not going to give up the chase now. They probably thought that they finally had a chance at catching me after they saw me limping away, which is something I think they are right about this time.

* * *

><p><strong>Elanas P.O.V.<strong>

I was sitting on my leather couch flipping through the channels on my TV, until I heard several sharp knocks on my door. I really didn't want to answer the door right now; today I just don't want to do anything. But Jason did say that he was going to come by right? I then got up and walked towards the door after heard more sharp knocks.

"Hang on I'm coming!" I called out to whoever was behind the door. When I opened the door I saw Jason in front of me panting. He immediately bolted inside when the door was wide enough and said.

"Close the door!"

"Why…?" I asked suspiciously.

"Just do it!" I complied and shut the door, then turned around facing him.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Can I just stay here for awhile until the coast is clear?" He asked ignoring my question.

"Okay wait a sec! You just come in here out of nowhere and you're asking if you could hide here?"

"Yeah pretty much." He simply said.

"Can you tell me who's chasing you first?" I asked.

"The palace guards are chasing me! Happy now?" Well that's rude. After Jason said that, heavy knocking was heard on the door. "Oh great they're here. Quick tell them I'm not here." He then quickly… limped to the other end of the hallway? When Jason was out of sight, I opened the door to see a Charizard wearing the uniform that Narus guards would wear.

"I'm sorry miss but have you seen a Grovyle lately, no questions asked please." The Charizard said. I looked behind me to make sure Jason was truly out of sight before replying.

"Um n-no sir I haven't seen one lately." I nervously said. I'm sorry but the Charizard looked scary! His size, the way he looked at me, all of it was very intimidating.

"Mind if I check your home miss?" He asked. He obviously suspected something; if I said no then he would know that Jason was hiding here, so of course I said.

"O-of course." After I said that I stood aside so he could make his way through the hallway. When he made it to the doorway for the main room of my home, he stood there surveying the room only to find nothing. For a second I thought Jason was caught. Just when I thought he was done looking around, he walked to the kitchen area. I had to find out where Jason was hiding. 'Jason can you hear me?' I said in his mind.

'Huh? Um yeah I can hear you.' He answered in his mind.

'Where are you?'

'Behind the kitchen counter, in the dinning room area.' After he sent that thought, the Charizard was now heading towards the dinning room area.

'Jason whatever you do don't move'

'What? Why?'

'Just don't move!' I then focused my psychic powers on the Charizards mind just before he entered the area.

* * *

><p><strong>Jasons P.O.V.<strong>

He was looking straight at me, although it didn't look like Arthur was really looking at me, it seemed as though as if he was looking through me. He then turned around, leaving the room as if he never found me! I stayed crouched next to the counter that separated the kitchen and dinning areas until I heard any sign that Arthur had left.

"I'm sorry if we wasted your time miss, but if you find a Grovyle running around here please inform the guards." Arthur said.

"I will." Elana said. I heard their steps grew quieter the farther they went away. I then heard a door close and waited for any sign if Arthur was truly gone. "Okay it's clear!" She called out.

I got out of my hiding place and went up to Elana who was standing at the center of the room. "How did you do that?" I asked.

"What? Oh right, I used my powers on his mind so he couldn't see you." That was amazing, I never knew a psychic could do that "Why were they trying to find you?" She asked.

"They were trying to get me back to the palace."

"You escaped?"

"Yeah, well I have to go now; my friends are waiting for me in town." I said whilst walking to the front door of her cabin, until I forgot the fact that I had a broken leg. "Ow!"

"What's wrong?"

"I have a broken leg okay!"

"Take it easy, it was just a question."

"Right, sorry, well see you later." I continued my way towards the door until Elana grabbed my hand and dragged me to the living room area. I felt my face grow suddenly warm when our hands made contact, so I tried to hide my face, fearing her reaction if she saw me blushing.

"Not until I help you, come over here." We both sat down on the leather couch, me on the right side of the couch while she sat on the left side. "Alright stay still okay." I nodded, unsure of what she might do. She brought her hands together and closed her eyes; it looked as if she was concentrating on something. Then an orb of pink light began to form in her hands, it grew bigger and brighter until it was the size of a soccer ball. Elana then brought the pink orb over my right leg and dropped it. The orb should have fallen on my leg immediately, but instead it floated as if it were a feather. When the orb finally made contact, it looked like if it dissolved into my leg, as if I were absorbing the wondrous light. After the orb completely disappeared I tried to move my leg to see if it were still broken. I was amazed to feel no pain when I moved it.

"Wow… it feels good as new. What was that you just did?"

"Healing Pulse, It heals wounds, bruises, and broken bones in just seconds, although it won't work if the person is hurt real bad. It made my job as a medic a lot easier."

"Thanks." Was all I could say. I was about to get up and leave, but I felt like if I owed Elana, she did hide me and healed my broken leg after all, so I decided to give her an offer "Um Elana… s-since I'm heading into town I was w-wondering if you would like to uh… come along?" I nervously asked. This was strange, I've never been this nervous to a girl before. I've met other girls before and I never felt nervous around them, so why was Elana so different?

Elana thought for a while before saying "Of course I would love to go!" she said with a smile. You know she looks kind of cute when she smiles. Dammit Jason, focus!

* * *

><p>After a while I was waiting outside for Elana to get some stuff she would need for a shopping trip, even though I told her that we were just going to go meet my friends she still ignored me. I was now wearing my brown cloak, I was still unsure if there were still guards looking for me in the forest but I didn't want to take any chances so I put on my disguise. Oh yeah I'm still wearing that red bandana from awhile ago (I know it's a cape but I think I'm just going to call it a bandana for now on).<p>

"Elana are you done yet?" I called out. Within seconds she came out with a basket and a small brown pouch, it looks like if that's what she keeps her money in.

"Okay I'm ready." She said.

"I told you before; were just going to hang out with my friends." I said in an annoyed tone.

"I know." Elana said cheerfully.

I sighed before saying "Never mind, let's just go." With that said we were now on our way towards town.

* * *

><p><strong>Elanas P.O.V.<strong>

We had just passed the hilltop where the wooden arch stood, I followed Jason from close behind. There were so many questions that I wanted to ask him since the day when I got attacked by that Hitmontop gang, I just didn't know where to start. I was sort of nervous when I was around him; it was probably because I barely even knew him. I guess I could start to know him by asking about his life.

"Hey Jason, how's your life at your palace?" I asked curiously.

"Hmm? Oh, it's good I guess." He answered.

"You guess?"

"Well it would be perfect if they'd let me out every once in a while. They think that I can't take care of myself!"

"Hehe they obviously haven't seen you fight." I chuckled.

"Oh they have. They have through the hard way." He smirked.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well let's just say that… I don't like it when Pokemon get in my way." Okay now I'm scared. Let's see, what else I could ask him just to keep this conversation going.

"Back when you fought that gang, you went into a fighting stance that looked familiar to me, what was it?" I asked.

"Fighting stance? Oh right! It's a new fighting style that my mentor developed with um… well anyways my mentor developed this fighting style that combines CQC and a Lucarios fighting style, its pretty useful." That was strange, when he paused for a second I felt a sudden pang of sadness, of course this emotion didn't belong to me. No, it was Jason's emotion that I felt.

It's a strange ability that the Ralts evolutions have. We are able to feel the emotions of other Pokemon better than other psychics. Emotions may be faint for other psychics to feel but because of the red horns that we have on our bodies, it amplifies those emotions ten times stronger than what the other psychics feel. But there is a little problem that we have. We sort of feel these emotions just automatically; even when we don't want to feel anybody's emotions we just still feel them. It's not like we have a choice in this. Although we could learn how to block these emotions through a lot of focus, it takes years to learn how to do this successfully. This enhanced ability to me is however a pain in the ass though, I don't really like feeling a random Pokemon's emotion, I mean it's just so weird that it is someone I don't know. Almost everyone I walked by yesterday had joy, depression, happiness, hate, thrill, fear, lust… okay that last one was pretty weird, I felt that one as soon as this random Pokemon looked at me. I'm still trying to get the hang of blocking emotions though.

"Oh um that's nice." I said. Shrugging off the emotion I just felt. "Could I learn something like that one day?"

"You serious?" he asked disbelievingly. I nodded "Um sorry but I think there's a problem with that." Well that offended me.

"What is the problem because I'm a female?"

We were now walking in a crowded street. This street had vendors selling goods and rich snobby looking Pokemon walking in it… what? It was so crowded that I had to walk closer to Jason so that I wouldn't get lost in the crowd.

"No it's not that, it's just that you're a psychic." He said trying to make his voice loud enough for me to hear over the crowd.

"So?"

"Psychics aren't really meant for fighting up close."

"I could learn how."

"No you can't. Besides the training for it is really tough and you would only find it where I live."

"I pretty sure that I can handle it, and I can find a way to learn it." I know I'm pretty stubborn.

He sighed in defeat before saying "You know what just forget it." I'm pretty good at winning these kinds of arguments.

We had just entered a different street and this one was a bit less crowded. After a few more minutes of walking we were in a whole new different area, I think it was the center of town. The area was large and circular and in the center of the area was a large fountain. As I looked around I noticed that there were other roads that led into this area, there were about five other roads. I also noticed that there were a lot of Pokemon around the area but they weren't here to find their way home, they were setting up stands and tents even colorful lights around the place.

"What's going on here?" I asked.

"You don't know what's going on?" He asked disbelievingly.

"Um… no. Should I?"

"… You're not from around here are you?"

"Well I just moved here, so I'm not really familiar with what you guys do here." I said.

"Really, from where did you move from?" He asked.

"I came here from Anadu, please I don't want to talk about why."

"Anadu? I thought you were from Naru. Never mind. Anyways everyone here is getting stuff set up for the annual fair that's going to happen tomorrow."

"Sounds cool. So where are your friends?" I asked.

"Right over there." He said while pointing at the fountain in the middle of area.

Over at the fountain were three Pokemon sitting on the edge of the fountain. On the right side of the group was a Blaziken, he looked like if he was having a hard time trying to stay awake. In the middle of the group was a Honchkrow and it looked like if he bragging about something. On the left side of the group was an Unfezant that looked like if he was listening intently on what the Honchkrow was talking about, it may look like if he was interested on what the Honchkrow was talking about but however I sensed annoyance from him. I wonder if…

'. Damit shut up already!' Yup he's annoyed.

"You know what, on second thought I think we should head elsewhere." Jason said while turning around to leave.

"Why what's wrong?" I asked curiously.

He hesitated for a second, probably thinking about a way to avoid the question knowing that I might win in another argument. "Okay look, my friends are sort of um… they're… I don't know how to explain it but I'm kind of worried about what they might say when they see me with you."

"… Are you embarrassed about me?"

"No it's just that…" I cut him off as I left to meet the group. "Hey wait!" he called out, but it was already too late, I had already reached the group. At first they didn't notice me standing in front of them, so I cleared my throat. The Honchkrow was the first to notice me.

"What do you want! Cant you see I'm talking!" The Honchkrow yelled. The other two became startled at this and noticed angry expression on his face soon faded as he noticed who I was. Oh no, I'm sensing lust from him "Oh I'm sorry beautiful, I didn't mean to scare you like that. Maybe I can make it up to you." The Honchkrow said with a smile.

I felt a little uncomfortable at this point, but thankfully Jason chose to step in "Okay Leo back off!"

"Whoa sorry Jason, I didn't know she was yours." Leo said, the smile on his face then quickly faded.

"I told you guys to not say my name in public! And she's not mines!"

"Take it easy man. Take deep breaths." The Blaziken said.

"Shut up!" Jason yelled.

"So are you free tonight?" Leo asked me.

"With you? No way."

A few hours had past since I met the group and we all introduced ourselves to each other. The Unfezant was Pax, the Blaziken was Drake, and of course the Honchkrow was Leo. All Pax talked about in the past couple of hours was how cool the Peace Flyers were. Drake didn't say much but he only talked when he wanted to give his opinion on the conversation we were having. All Leo said was about him, and of course from time to time he kept on asking me out and as always I said no. By the time it was sunset there was barely anyone around.

"Alright it's been nice talking to you guys, right now me and Elana have to head back."

"Already?" Pax said.

"Alright then see you two later." Drake said.

"Yeah and don't get sidetracked on each other on your way back." Pax said with a chuckle.

"What?" Jason said.

"He means don't you two go on a date on your way back." Leo said with a chuckle.

Jason sighed before saying "It's not a date, I'm just taking her back home."

"Does she need you to go with her?" Pax asked.

"Yeah and who said anything about it being a date?" Leo said with a laugh.

"… Goodbye guys." With that said he turned around and walked on the road we used to come into this area. I waved goodbye to the group and followed Jason through New Jamestown.

* * *

><p>"Thanks for getting me back home." I said as we reached the front door of my home. It was now dark, and the only light out tonight was the silver glow from the moon and the celestial sky. It was truly a beautiful sight.<p>

"No problem. Hey are you going to the annual fair tomorrow?" Jason asked.

"Yeah of course I'm coming, it sounds exciting!" I answered with glee.

"Okay do you know the move Teleport?" He asked.

"Always have. Why?" I asked curiously.

"I want to escape from my palace without anyone knowing it."

"Oh I get it. Your to lazy to get out yourself." I said with a chuckle.

"No it's just that I know that they are going to raise the security. So I need you to get me out of there without anyone noticing it. I'm in enough trouble as it is."

"Okay then just tell me where you live."

"At the end of that dirt road." Jason said while pointing at the road we had just used to get to my home. Well now I felt dumb, I thought that this road led to another town but instead it led to a supposedly huge palace that I somehow missed.

"Oh right." I said.

"On the very top of the palace I'm going to leave the window to my room open, you should be able to see it from the front of the palace, go there at four P.M. got it?"

"Yeah I got it." I then opened the door to my home and said "See you tomorrow then."

"Yeah see you then." With that said he turned to the dirt road and walked towards his palace.

I then closed the door and headed into my room. The walks to New Jamestown always left me tired by the time I got back home. I always felt like if I wanted to just jump onto my bed and go into a deep sleep, not bothering to put the blankets over me… which was what I just did right now.

**A/N: Alright thanks for reading and expect the next chapter to come out soon. You don't have to do this but don't forget to favorite this. Also R&R would also be appreciated too. And now for the big news. I just found out that it is important for every author to have a beta reader by their side (unless they think they don't need one), correcting mistakes and adding detail to improve the story. I've been really stressed out lately and I fear that I may have not been paying attention, so I ask of you fellow authors to help me by being that important beta reader I need. PM me if you want to help. Please and thank you.**


	5. The Angel Of Death

**A/N: Thanksgiving is almost here everyone so I wish you all a happy thanksgiving. Of course chapter five is going to be delayed a week later than what I usually update in because I have to go to California to visit my relatives for the holiday, but as I said before I wont keep you guys waiting for more than three weeks. I read a couple of reviews about some mistakes I made in the last chapter and I would like to thank those people for pointing them out, I was a little stressed out when I wrote that chapter. Now let's see what Jason is up to.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, Gamefreak does. I just own the characters in the story… if I did then the show would be a lot more different.**

Chapter 4: The angel of death

**Jasons P.O.V.**

"For the last time, I'm not going anywhere! Get out of my room!" I shouted at Arthur. Right now Arthur had just entered my room and warned me to not escape again… for the hundredth time!

"Fine, but I'm posting some guards in the hallway just in case."

"Get out!" I said whilst pushing him out the door. When he was finally outside of my room I shut the door in his face hearing an "ow" from him. "Finally!" I said. I then went over to my bed and pulled out my brown bag that I hid under my pillow. Its four thirty now and Elana still hasn't shown up yet, maybe she got sidetracked on something. I now paced through my room impatiently for the next thirty minutes occasionally taking a look at the clock, waiting for the arrival of Elana. Okay that's it I've waited long enough! I'm busting my way out of here.

Before I even took my first step towards the door I heard the sound of a gust of wind and with it a white figure appeared out of nowhere by my window. I was startled by this but I soon realized who the white figure is. It was Elana. "Sorry I was late, you wouldn't believe how many guards there were." Elana said.

"Never mind about that lets just get out of here." I said.

"Okay give me your hand." She said with her hand out.

"W-Why?" I asked nervously.

"Because I need to be holding on to you so I can teleport you out of here duh."

"Oh uh right…" I said. I hesitated before walking up to her. When our hands came into contact I felt my face grow instantly warm.

"Have you ever teleported before?" Elana asked.

"No why?"

"Um nothing." Somehow I think this isn't going to go well. Before I got the chance to say anything else we had already disappeared.

It felt strange to teleport, being with a Pokemon using the move Teleport was far more different than using the teleporters around the palace. Whenever I use the teleporters I feel nothing but the electric current going down my body, but the move Teleport felt like an invisible force was pulling me into an empty void. Once we reached our destination I felt like if I had just jumped off the hundred foot wall all over again.

I took a moment to realize where we were. We were in the middle of the dirt road outside of the wall.

"Are you okay?" Elana asked.

"Hang on a sec… yeah I'm okay now." I said whilst trying to catch my breath.

"Sorry the first couple of times are always like that but you'll get used to them."

"N-Never mind about that lets just go now."

"Do you want to teleport to town?"

"No! I-I'd rather walk there." Elana nodded in response. Pretty soon we were out of sight of the palace.

* * *

><p>We were now at the wooden arch on the hilltop outside of town, me getting my disguise on while Elana had her back up against a nearby tree.<p>

"Are you done yet?" Elana asked in an annoyed tone.

"… I am now, thank you for your patience." I sarcastically said whilst pulling the hood over my head.

"Alright then lets go, your friends are probably waiting for us there." We were now on our way towards the town, taking the same routes from last time to get to the fair. At first the walk was pretty quiet for the both of us so I decided to break up the silence.

"Hey Elana you said you were from Anadu right?" I asked. She nodded. "I'm still kind of confused, you said you were in Narus army during the war in Anadu, but you're from Anadu, how's that?"

Elana hesitated before answering "Okay I guess I could tell you this now, I planned on telling you soon anyways… During the war, I lived in a city that was extremely loyal to their king. The Pokemon who lived there wouldn't give up the city to Naru without a fight."

We entered the same crowded street from yesterday, although there wasn't as much Pokemon as there usually were.

"Naru didn't want to kill the citizens of the city, that would make them look bad, so they had to take them down with force. Everyone I knew was sent to the prisons designed for them, all my neighbors, my friends, and my family was sent there. I was one of the few who didn't want to fight, but they didn't care. I was eventually captured and sent to one of the prisons."

We turned right, entering a less crowded street.

"I-I never knew that Naru did something like that." I said. I'm saying the truth when I said that, I honestly never knew.

"I don't expect you to; governments always try to hide the ugly parts of war, even from a prince like you." She looked down sullenly before continuing "It was a terrible place, almost everyday someone died either from starving to death, or from a bullet from a pissed off guard. They gave us one meal every morning, and that was the only meal they would give us for the whole day. It was barely even enough for us."

We turned left; there were barely any Pokemon in this street, only the occasional small groups that were socializing with each other.

Elana then looked up, gazing at the orange sky above "Then he came."

"He?" I asked curiously. It took me awhile before a thought came into my head "The Grovyle from the picture?" She nodded. I noticed a small teardrop rolling down her cheek. Maybe I shouldn't have brought that subject up.

"Look I don't want to talk about this anymore. Maybe I can tell you more later."

"Its okay I understand." I said. Elana then wiped away the tear that was about fall and regained her normal posture. "Here we are." I announced as the fair came into sight.

"Let's go then!" Elana said with a smile, as if she never felt the sadness she had a second ago. And just like that she bolted off, disappearing from my sight. Come to think of it, she's kind of impatient like me. I quickly followed her before I lost all trace of her. In a moment I found her next to the fountain in the center of the fair, astounded at the wondrous decorations hanging around the place. She obviously had never been to a fair before.

There were stands surrounding the edges of the area, each decorated with its own unique design. Some of these stands had unique artwork and pottery surrounding them, there was even a stand covered in a large variety of colorful clothing. Hanging overhead were lights of various different colors, there were also floating purple flames in the air that made the sky seem mysterious. The last part I should mention about the fair is the delicious scents in the air. There was the smell of popcorn, pretzels, funnel cakes, and… could it be? Chocolate! No, no got to lay off the chocolate for awhile… maybe just one piece wouldn't hurt.

"Are you alright?" I asked walking up to her, trying my best to ignore the chocolate scent in the air.

"Yeah it just that… it looks so… amazing." Elana said.

I chuckled before saying "I bet they didn't have these back where you lived huh."

Before Elana could reply a new voice interrupted her "Hey there you are." I turned around to see the source of the voice to see all three of my friends behind me; Leo was the one who spoke a second ago.

"What took you two so long?" Pax asked.

"I may have an idea of what they were doing." Leo said. You know what? I'm getting really close to punching Leo in the face right now, if one more thing comes out of that beak his and has something to do with me and Elana he is going end up having a new face.

"You know what Leo, shut up!" I shouted. I noticed that the surrounding Pokemon were now looking at me strangely. Great attention, the thing I love most in the world. However they probably thought that this was none of their business after awhile and continued with what they were doing.

"Alright that's enough, leave those two alone." Drake said "Were here to have fun, so let's go enjoy the time we have left here before it's gone." This is the good thing about Drake; he's more mature than the other two. I don't know if it's because of what he was taught when he was little, or it's because he's a bit older than us and he knows more.

"I still think they have something going on." Pax muttered, failing to hide his comment from all of us. Drake shot Pax an angry glance, shutting him up from saying anything else.

After all that was done we decided to go do what we came here to do, to have fun. We all went our separate ways to enjoy what we favored most here. Leo and Pax both went to enter a competition designed to see who is most skilled flyer in town, the competition was taking place on the rooftops of the surrounding buildings, I think they set up obstacles on the rooftops to make things a bit more difficult for the contestants but I don't know I haven't been up there to see it myself. Drake and I both decided to play some of the games they had set up here to win some prizes; we are like real pros when it comes to fair games, heck we even compete to see who was better. Elana of course was off admiring the merchandise they had here, but I can't blame her, the stuff they had selling here is pretty neat.

Me and Drake were now playing at a skee-ball stand, competing for the highest score. I was on my last skee-ball; if I made this one in the hundred point mark then I would beat Drakes high score. I slowly brought the ball up in front of me, carefully positioning it to meet the mark. Drake was standing by the stand, about to witness my victory. I was sure nothing would stop me now.

"Hey Jason, what do you think about Elana?" Drake asked, preventing me from focusing.

"Why do you ask?" I asked whilst turning my attention to him.

"I'm just wondering how you feel about her. You don't usually trust other Pokemon this fast." Come to think of it, Elana has been the only Pokemon I've known to trust in a short period of time. I don't even know the answer to why I do.

"I… I don't know."

"You don't know how you feel about her?" Drake said disbelievingly.

"No it's just that I don't know why I trust her so fast. I think it's because she knows who I really am under this cloak, I just have to trust her with my secret."

"Hmm, maybe. But you still haven't answered my first question."

"What? Oh right. Well I guess she's alright."

Drake smirked before saying "Alright? Come on I know you've been looking at her strangely."

"No I haven't!" I objected. Actually I have been occasionally taking quick glances at Elana, I don't know why though, but I guess she is a beautiful sight. Maybe it's because of those sapphire eyes she has; they just seem to sparkle in the moonlight. Perhaps it could be that emerald hair she has. But most of all it must be that smile she always has, I think she looks cute whenever she smiles. Whoa wait a minute! Where did all of those thoughts come from?

"Sure what ever you say." Drake said with a chuckle. I shot Drake an angry glance telling him to shut up. After he did I went back on focusing on the game.

I carefully aimed the ball, predicting its exact shot, giving it the right amount of power. Now drake was going to witness his defeat. Now I was sure that nothing would stop me now. But right when I released the ball an unfamiliar voice spoke up.

"Excuse me sir." Right when those words came out it startled me so much that I changed the course of the ball, shooting in the ten point mark.

"Haha still the champ!" Drake shouted out.

I am so pissed right now, whoever said that better have a good excuse for making me lose. When I turned around to see the source of the voice, I found an Accelgor standing there. He seemed to have no emotion shown on his face, none at all; I was expecting to see a face that said sorry I made you lose.

"Are you Jason?" Now this surprised me. How did he see me through my disguise? Did I give away some hint of my true identity? I also noticed that this Accelgor had a …Russian accent?

"Um sorry I think you have the wrong guy." I said with uncertainty.

"Do not be lying to me, I know you are Jason."

I gave up and said "Okay I am Jason. Who are you?" I asked.

Instead of giving an answer the Acceglor pulled out a small pistol instead. "Vladislav sends his regards." He said whilst cocking the pistol. Pokemon nearby gasped in horror as they turned their attention towards us, expecting the worse to come. Drake just stood there, confused of what was happening at the moment. Normally anyone who was in my position would feel fear hit them in the back of their head. But was I scared? Of course not, because just as long as I do something right now I'm safe.

Unfortunately the Acceglor didn't react fast enough when I made a move to defend myself. I quickly grabbed his arm and made him point the weapon in the air, firing several shots into noting but the sky. I then elbowed him in the face, not only making him stumble back a couple of steps but also releasing his grip on the gun. I took the pistol away from him and pressed the release button for the magazine, letting the clip fall on the floor. After that I threw the pistol in a nearby trashcan, by this time the Acceglor had recovered from the blow I sent him. But it seemed as if this Acceglor came prepared as he pulled out a knife and began slashing at me. He missed about four times before I charged up my leaf blade and gave him one good slash across the face. He fell back releasing the knife from his grasp, yelling out in pain as he covered his face, preventing himself from losing any blood.

"Stand back! Stand back!" A guard yelled out, pushing his way through the crowd that has formed around us. Two guards came and handcuffed the Acceglor then quickly taking him away to who knows where. The crowd clapped at me as if I had achieved something great. "Are you alright?" asked a Combusken guard who came up to me.

"Yeah I'm alright." I answered. The Combusken nodded and took off, following the two other guards who took my attacker into custody.

I was still left there with questions buzzing in my head. How did he know who I was? More importantly why did he attack me? That last question was soon answered as I recalled the Acceglor mentioning the name Vladislav. That coward! he probably wants me dead so Naru could be powerless so he may begin his invasion.

Okay let me tell you about Vladislav so you won't get confused. Vladislav is the king of The Northern Region, and probably one of the biggest dictators alive today. He is a Walrein that is corrupted with money and power. If there's something he wants he uses force to get it. He thinks that war is the answer to all of his problems. He also takes away valuables away from families all over his region, rich or poor he doesn't care. Almost everyone in his region doesn't like him, there have been a couple rebellions formed in the past against the dictator, the only ones who are actually loyal to him is his military force.

But how did the Northerner found out who I was under my disguise? Wait a minute! If Vladislav wanted Naru powerless, wouldn't he have to kill everyone who was going to lead Naru? Oh no, Mom.

I then pushed my way through the crowd, trying my best to exit the fair as fast as possible, leaving a confused Blaziken behind. I heard Drake call me though I couldn't hear what it was. I made my way through the thick crowd and began sprinting towards the street I used to come in. I noticed Elana running over to the crowd to see what was going on, but not before we crashed into each other head on. We both fell backwards after the impact, rubbing our heads to ease the pain.

"Ouch! Watch where you're going!" Elana said. "Wait, Jason?" She said in realization. I didn't stay long enough to give her a reply; I got back up and resumed sprinting out of town. "Jason! Where are you going?" That was the last thing I heard from her before I left the fair.

I made several sharp turns through the crowded streets, avoiding anyone who was in my way. Just when I thought that I must have been running around in circles for a while, I finally see the road leading to the palace. I was finally out of town and now traveling on the dirt road towards the palace. It felt like as if seconds had gone by.

* * *

><p>It was dark now; I was now traveling through the chilly night towards the palace. Almost there, I only have one more mile left until I get to the palace. I just hope mom is alright. Wait, what's that? I suddenly stopped when I heard voices coming from up ahead. Do other Pokemon use this road? No I doubt that, the only ones I know who actually uses this road is Elana and the palace guards who often come out looking for me. Now the voices sounded closer, some sounded familiar; some were ones I never heard before. Within seconds the sources of the voices were now in my sight, although it seemed as if they haven't noticed me yet.<p>

The first four of this group I recognized quickly, it was the Hitmontop gang, all four Tyrouges and the one Hitmontop. I never got the chance to learn their names just to let you know. There were three more Pokemon with this group, though I don't know who they were. Traveling in the far back of the group is an Arbok. The Arbok was wearing a black military beret and a brown leather gun holster around the midsection of the snake. It was quite strange to me, I've never seen a Pokemon who doesn't have any hands have a weapon in their possession. To the right of the Arbok was a Rapidash, the only female of the group. There was nothing special about the Rapidash, although she was the only one not talking in the group. Traveling in the front of the group was a Bisharp. He had his arms crossed and gave out a look that would intimidate anyone. I know the Hitmontop gang was probably out looking for trouble but with these three I had no idea what they were doing. New recruits to their gang maybe?

The Bisharp was the first to notice me although he gave out no signs if he was surprised or amused to see someone else out here, he stopped walking instead. What I found creepy about this guy was that he showed no emotion, nothing but that normal look you would see on any Bisharp. The other two in the back noticed me as well and stopped simultaneously, though these two gave off some sort of sign unlike the Bisharp. The Arbok looked eager when he saw me while the Rapidash looked astounded at me. The last ones to notice were the Hitmontop gang members, though they didn't stop around the time when the other three did, instead they kept walking and talking with each other, unaware of my presence. They finally stopped and noticed me when they noticed their other companions were far behind them.

"Hey what do you want you freak?" The Hitmontop said. Freak? Oh right I still have my disguise on. I pulled back the hood over my head, revealing my face to the group. All but the three in the back jumped back in surprise. "W-What? No not you again! Look Jason, all we want to do is go back home after a tiring hike! Is that too much to ask for?" The Hitmontop said. Strange, every time we met he would always attack me, not ask for mercy. I had a feeling he was being truthful this time.

"Just go back home?" I asked. The whole gang nodded. Well I really want to get back to the palace as soon as possible, so I had to make this quick. "Alright I'll let you guys slip by this time, though I won't be as compassionate next time."

"Yes thank you." The Hitmontop quickly said. The whole gang now made its way around me from my right side, keeping as much space away from me as possible. Though the only ones who didn't move were the three mysterious Pokemon still standing were they were.

"Hey are you guys going?" I asked, they didn't reply.

I caught the first sign of movement on the corner of my eye. One of the Tyrouge dove at me, with a fist glowing white. I knew they would try to attack me when I least expected it. I countered the Tyrouges move by grabbing his fist, just inches away from my face. The other three Tyrouge attempted the same, hoping to get me in the position I was in. I then grabbed the Tyrouge I already had a hold on from the neck and threw him onto one of his allies, making them both fall on the floor. I then jumped behind the other two Tyrouge just when they threw their punches only to hit nothing. As soon as both Tyrouges turned around to face me, I grabbed their heads and slammed them into each other, knocking them out instantly. As the knocked out Tyrouges fell on the floor, the other two who I took down seconds ago got back up on their feet ready to get back into the fight. We stood still for what seemed like ages, waiting for the other to make the first move. I took a look at their faces, they seemed to be timid, and they jumped back at every movement I made. A smirk came over my face as an idea came into my mind. I then made the leaves on my elbow quickly merge together forming a green glowing curved blade that made the sound of a sword being unsheathed as it was being formed. At the sight of my leaf blades the two last Tyrouges ran off into the forest, screaming in fear. Since that was done I made my leaf blades separate back into the three leaves that was on my elbow.

I heard the sound of a gun cocking behind my head. Damn forgot about the Hitmontop.

"I've got you this time." The Hitmontop said whilst smirking. I slowly turned around with my hands in the air; I noticed that it was a pistol that the Hitmontop was now pointing at my face. "You're dead now, after all these years I finally get to kill you." He said coldly. I sighed before looking above him, squinting to see through the dark. "What are you looking at?" He asked aggressively before looking at where I was looking at. Good he fell for it.

In one swift motion I grabbed his hand that had the pistol and smacked it onto his face, making him release the grip on the gun. As he leaned forward to rub his face, I grabbed the back of his head and slammed him onto the ground, making a cloud of dust rise. He was now out cold due to the intense impact.

I then heard slow clapping coming from behind me. "Very well done I must say. But of course anyone could beat those pathetic insects." The Bisharp said. The Bisharp had a raspy voice with a deep tone that sounded like as if he was pretty old, though I think he probably is. The Bisharp took a few steps towards me before continuing "I've been looking forward to fighting you in a long time, Jason." I wasn't really surprised if he knew my name, what would surprise me is if he didn't.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I am the blade that will stick to you forever… I am the angel that brings death to all those I touch… I am the one who will bring peace to the lands with fire… I am, Khez, the knight of death." Wow some introduction.

"Did Vladislav send you to kill me too?" I asked.

Khez chuckled before saying "Yes Vladislav did send me, but I'm not here to kill you, I am here for another target." That cant be good at all.

"Let me deal with the boy sir, I haven't killed anyone in a while you know." The Arbok said whilst moving forward. The Arbok had the same sort of raspy voice that Khez has, but it sounded less deep than Khezs.

"No Kobra, I want him to live." Khez said. Kobra just grunted in response. Khez then crouched into a very familiar fighting stance in front of me. "I will make this fair for you Jason. I won't use my blades, and I will let you make the first move."

"You sound pretty confident, you sure that you can take me on?" I asked whilst dropping into my fighting stance.

"Oh yes I'm pretty sure that I will succeed, just don't disappoint me."

We stood there for what seemed like hours before I made the first move. I then moved in and performed a leg sweep only to hit nothing when Khez jumped into the air. As he came down he threw a punch to my face, making me flinch back. I then attempted to get a hold of him only to be countered when he grabbed my hand whilst twisting it. I groaned in pain before he threw me onto the ground with intense force. As I caught a glimpse of his fist coming down on me I quickly rolled out of the way, just inches from where he struck. I had a feeling that this was going to be a tough fight.

"I was expecting more of a challenge from you. Perhaps you're not like your father, yet." Khez said.

"Huh? You know something about my father?" I asked whilst getting back up.

Instead of answering my question he threw a punch that I easily dodged to the side. However he must have predicted where I was going and threw a second punch at my right side, this one I couldn't dodge in time. I staggered back whilst clutching my side; I have to focus if I want to beat this guy. Time to try something new. I then used Agility, doubling my speed instantly, but as I went in to try and get a hold of him once again, he grabbed me by my neck instead. I was now dangling in the air in front of him, staring into his menacing eyes. He had a tight grip on me that I could barely breathe. I had one last idea left, I was saving this one as a last resort, but it could be all over for me if I screw this one up. But I have no choice. I summoned all the energy I could muster into the palm of my hand, though this could take a while since there was no sun.

"You are an embarrassment to Ryoto. He put up more of a better fight than you."

"H-How would you know that he puts up a better fight?" I asked in a hoarse voice, gasping for air.

"Because I was there before he died." He said coldly.

This shocked me. I thought he died on a battlefield in another region in the hands of a solider. Could this be the one? "Y-You son of a bi-" was all I could say before he slammed me up against a tree. He still had a hold of me and I was beginning to lose consciousness. Just a little longer.

"I could kill you right now… but that would jeopardize our plans." Khez said.

"What plans?" I asked.

Khez snickered before saying "You are full of questions boy. Though you won't have any of them answered now, but in time they will." Almost. "I will let you live for now. But the next time we meet, I'm going to make sure that you end up in a world of pain." Now!

"Like this?" I said before raising my right hand at him, with a glowing yellow orb in the palm of it. The knights' eyes widened before I unleashed my SolarBeam on him. He was now engulfed in the yellow beam that emanated light throughout the area, a light that could be seen for miles. After my attack was done we both fell down on our backs. I fell down in exhaustion while he fell down from the most powerful move I know.

I struggled to get back up, falling down several times before succeeding. I noticed that Kobra and the unnamed Rapidash weren't surprised to see their leader fall. Kobra was looking at me with eagerness while the Rapidash was looking intently at me. Were they expecting this? I jumped back in surprise as the first sign of movement appeared on the Bisharp.

"Hahahaha! Sorry Jason but that wont work on me! I've survived worst!" Khez said whilst jumping back onto his feet. He appeared unharmed, no burn marks, no sign of injury, not even a single scratch was seen on him! He slowly walked up to me, I was unsure of what he was going to do, but I'm too exhausted from the attack to do anything. "And the answer to your last question, no. More worst than that." He said before the top of his head glowed white. It's an Iron Head attack. Though I couldn't react fast enough to what was about to happen to me.

As soon as his head impacted mines, I fell backwards once more. Everything slowly becoming blurry before I finally blacked out.

**A/N: Phew, finally done with this chapter. Took me quite a while to when everyone was using the computer. Well it just goes to show that you can't win em all. Don't worry Jason will get back in the fight soon enough. I'm still searching for a beta reader so if anyone would like to beta read for me, please tell me. Don't forget to review!**


	6. Flowing In Our Grieving Tears

**A/N: I can't believe it but I'm finally done with this chapter! I've encountered a very bad case of writers block, but its good to be out of it. Now for some good news. Over the past weeks I thought of how the entire story will be and other stories after this. That's right, I'm going to make a "Dark Savior Series" and its going to be pretty long, I'm not going to say how much there will be, but I know its going to be epic. Now on with the disclaimer! By the way do I need to do one every chapter, or is the one at the beginning of the story good enough?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon I just own the characters here.**

Chapter 5: Flowing in our grieving tears

**Elanas P.O.V.**

What was that! I was trying to follow Jason through the forest after he abruptly left the fair without telling me why, then all of a sudden a bright yellow light was seen on the road ahead of me. I don't know what could have made the light, it could have been a move used, or it could be one of those mysterious things that happen in the middle nowhere. Either way I had to find out what happened, if I don't then I probably would die not knowing. I then dashed towards where I saw the light, letting my curiosity guide me.

I then came into a halt when I saw an Arbok, Rapidash, and a Bisharp standing near a Grovyle on the floor. It took me a while before I realized who the figure on the floor is. It was Jason! It didn't look like as if he was moving at all. Did the group take him down? No that's impossible, I've seen Jason fight before and I know he's tough to take down. But of course I couldn't deny the signs of injury on him.

"You shouldn't have mentioned about the plans we have for the boy Khez. Just let me put one bullet through his head then we could-" the Arbok said to the Bisharp named Khez.

"I've told you before Kobra, we need him alive. He's no good to us dead." Khez said, cutting off Kobra from finishing. Kobra just grunted in response. "We need to leave now; we've wasted enough time here. The palace guards are probably going to catch us if we stay." He said whilst walking in my direction.

I had to think fast before I was caught, so I dove into the nearest bush to the right of me. I watched as the Bisharp and Arbok walked past me, unaware of my presence. However Khez stopped at where I was a moment ago. Did he find some sort of sign I was there? My heart was pounding now, fearing the worst to come. Khez turned towards where Jason was at.

"War, are you coming?" Khez called out. The Rapidash named War was looking down at Jason before Khez had called her; it seemed as if she was examining him. War quickly turned her gaze towards the Bisharp and nodded, saying nothing at all. War trotted ahead of the other two, leaving them behind to catch up.

I waited there until all signs of them were gone, then I quickly jumped out of my hiding place and dashed towards where Jason laid unconscious. I knelt down besides him, checking his pulse. He's alive good; I was beginning to fear that he might have died! I then focused and prepared a Healing Pulse, letting it fall on top of Jason's body after it was done. The bruises on his body quickly disappeared as well as the cuts on his head. Even though he was healed he was still unconscious from the last blow that he might have received, that's just one of the few things that Healing Pulse can't do. Before I could witness the last of the moves effects I heard moaning and movement coming from behind me. As I looked behind myself I noticed that there were three other Pokemon on the floor, all with familiar faces. It was the small Hitmontop gang that I encountered on my first trip into town, but it seemed as if they were missing two other members. How I missed these three on my way over here, I don't know.

"Ugh, my head." One of the Tyrouge moaned whilst rubbing the side of his head.

"Oh Arceus. My face! Am I bleeding?" The Hitmontop asked in a panicked tone whilst holding on to his face. However his attention was soon drawn to me and Jason. Grinning, he said "Hey look guys. Looks like someone finally learned their lesson."

I stood up in front of the gang and said "Leave him alone!"

"Hey don't we know you from somewhere?" The Hitmontop asked. "Oh right your that Gardevoir from that one night. Look doll just stand aside and you won't get hurt."

"Doll?" I asked calmly. Okay here's one of the few things you should know about me. Nobody calls me names like that! You don't ever want to make me mad by calling me doll! Why? I don't know, something about it just bugs me.

I then used Psychic on the two Tyrouges behind the Hitmontop, dangling them in the air. The Tyrouges were thrashing about, unsure of what was happening at the moment. I then flung them into the depths of the forest in a random direction, hearing their yells for help grow quieter the farther they went. I then moved on to the Hitmontop, my eyes glaring at him like daggers. The Hitmontop shrank back with a look of fear in his eyes and made a break for it. I of course used Psychic on him and with a flick of my hand, I flung him towards a nearby tree. After he slid down from the tree I flung him towards another tree across from him, then again, and again, and again, and… nope that's it… and again for the hell of it. I then brought the Hitmontop in front of me, upside down with a couple of leaves and twigs on him.

"Now what was that you said?" I asked with a fake smile. Before the Hitmontop could reply, shouting was heard from behind us. I turned around to see a group of five guards running towards us with flashlights in hand. In the group of five was a Heatmor, an Electabuzz, a Pidgeot, and two Escavalier. "Well look who's here to take you in." I said whilst turning my attention back to the squirming Hitmontop.

"P-Please you have to let me go, you cant let them take me in. I will die! I would do anything if you let me go. Please anything!" The Hitmontop pleaded.

"Hmm, let's see the options here. Let you go, or let you rot in jail… yeah let you rot in jail." I said. Within seconds the palace guards were at the scene, the two Escavalier examining the unconscious Grovyle while the other three surrounded me and the Hitmontop.

"There's that rat that snuck in the palace." The Heatmor guard said whilst pointing at the Hitmontop.

"I'd pummel you for what you did!" The Electabuzz aggressively said.

"Wait what did he do?" I asked. I was confused at what was happening right now. What exactly did he do? It had to be something really serious if these guards are acting aggressive.

Pidgeot stood up before saying "Hitmontop, you are under arrest for assisting in the assassination of Queen Elizabeth. You will be taken with us for questioning, and face your execution. May Arceus have mercy on your soul." The Pidgeot said coldly. That can't be good, isn't Jason's mom the queen? He then turned to me and said "You Gardevior, put him down. We'll take it from here." I nodded and released my psychic hold on the Hitmontop, but as soon as he touched the ground he bolted out of the circle we formed around him.

"He's making a run for it!" The Heatmor shouted.

The Hitmontop didn't get very far before the Electabuzz tackled him to the ground, sending punches to the Hitmontops face nonstop. Just when I thought things were getting little too rough the two guards ran up and attempted their best to hold the Electabuzz back from harming the Hitmontop any more. They were successful in their attempt and were now trying to calm the Electabuzz down while the Hitmontop was on the ground holding on to his face.

"Why does everyone keep hitting me in the face?" The Hitmontop asked in an annoyed tone. Soon enough the two guards were done calming the Electabuzz down and placed handcuffs on the Hitmontop.

"You two, is he alright?" The Pedgeot asked the two Escavalier examining Jason.

One of the Escavaliers nodded in response before saying "He's out but he's alright, I don't understand though, there's no sign of injury on him." As if on cue, Jason jumped back up into life, entering a fighting stance with a panicked expression on his face. This sudden move startled us all making us flinch simultaneously. I didn't expect him to wake up until in the morning.

"W-What's going on?" Jason shouted while taking a survey of the area.

"Jason are you all right?" I asked with worry.

"Elana? What are you doing here?" Jason asked.

"Jason there's no time to ask questions right now, we need you back at the palace immediately." The Pidgeot said, intervening between us.

"What why?" Jason asked.

"It's your mother Jason. Look there's no time to explain right now we need to get back now!" Jason thought for a while before he finally nodded. Hey wait, I don't want to get left out in this. This might be my chance to look around the palace without the fear of guards catching me.

"Wait can I come?" I pleaded.

"No I'm sorry miss, you can't come unless-"

"Let her come, she's with me." Jason said, interrupting the Pidgeot.

"Um, y-yes prince." The Pidgeot nodded.

The Electabuzz soon came over to us with the Hitmontop over his shoulder and nodded. We were now on our way towards the palace at a pace so fast, that I could barely keep up with everyone else. I was quite curious to see how the palace looked like more from inside.

* * *

><p>"Jason there you are!" A familiar looking Charizard said as soon as Jason and I came out of the teleporter. We had just entered the palace and I was amazed at how large this place was! The white marble floor looked shiny and beautiful, and I was amazed at how high the ceiling was. I don't know why Jason hates it here; I would do anything to live here! As soon as we entered through the palace front doors Jason took me to a blue pad on the floor next to the elevator, he called them teleporters. It sure felt different to teleport through technology than with the move Teleport. It felt more… calmer.<p>

"Arthur what's going on?" Jason asked. I felt a hint of worry from Jason; it seemed as if he didn't want to hear what the Charizard named Arthur had to say.

"Jason… it's…" From the look on Arthur's face it looked like as if he was searching for the right words to tell the bad news. He sighed before finally saying "Your mother… s-she's dieing Jason."

"What!" Jason said disbelievingly. "How? I-Is it age?"

"No Jason, its not her age. She's been poisoned." Arthur answered sullenly.

"Poisoned by what!" Jason yelled with tears already beginning form in his eyes.

"Let me explain Jason. A group of eight Pokemon broke inside the Palace, we tried to stop them but they were just too strong for us. We lost a total of twenty seven guards to them. I've never seen Pokemon trained to kill like they did… except, no never mind. Anyways while we were distracted in fighting them, one of these Pokemon managed to sneak into the queens' room. Elizabeth said it was a Bisharp." As soon as Arthur said the name Bisharp, I felt a sudden pang of fear coming from Jason. I never thought that he would ever feel that emotion. Though now that I think of it, the reason why he might've felt fear is because of the Bisharp he met on the road is the same one who broke into the palace. "She said the Bisharp stuck one of his blades into her then left. After that, they all escaped into the forest. The blade that the Bisharp stuck her with was seeped in the most deadly poison we've ever seen." Arthur motioned us to follow him down the hall before continuing. "The poison is a mixture of a Skorupis sting and the poison powder of an Oddish, but it's mostly Arbok poison." Again I felt another pang of fear come from Jason. Jason is starting to worry me; it's not like him to be like this. Maybe I could ask him what's wrong later.

"Isn't there an antidote for that?" Jason asked.

"No, I'm sorry but there isn't. The poison is too strong for anything we have right now." We then came to a stop when we reached the end of the hallway. There stood in front of us was a large wooden door, guarded by two Shellmets which Arthur told to stand aside. "You should… spend whatever time she has left with her."

"…How long does she has?" Jason quietly asked.

Arthur sighed before answering "At least ten minutes." Arthur pushed the door open revealing a large room, decorated with expensive looking furniture in it. "I'm sorry but who's this?" Arthur said, noticing me for the first time.

"This is Elana, she's a friend." Jason answered.

"Oh, you mean a-"

"No just a friend!" I quickly said. Is just standing next to Jason really giving everyone the wrong sign?

"Alright then… Look you have to stay outside, only-" Arthur said before he was cut off by Jason.

"Let her come in with us! She has my permission." Jason said. I sensed annoyance coming from him; he probably doesn't like how they treat common Pokemon here.

"Fine, just get in." Arthur said before walking into the room, with us following close behind.

I was amazed at not only the size of the room, but at what was inside it. There were red rugs spread across the room, colorful paintings hanging on every space of the walls, and beautifully carved furniture here and there. Jason's room is nothing compared to this. What stood out in this room was a huge circular bed that had a sleeping Megainium in it. However the Megainium had a lighter shade of green than the normal Megainium would have, probably because she was dying dieing. I also noticed that the petals around her neck looked wilted and have lost its bright color, almost like if they were dieing as well.

I've heard that grass types sometimes show these kinds of symptoms when they are sick or about to die. This usually happens when a grass type doesn't get enough sunlight for awhile, at least a month without sunlight. This is probably why you won't see a single grass type in a region where the sun barely even shines. I've seen this kind of thing happen before back at where I used to live, it happened to a… never mind I don't want to talk about it anymore.

At the sight of the Megainium, (which I'm guessing is Queen Elizabeth) Jason ran over to the right side of the bed and knelt down besides her. I don't really know how to respond right now, I don't even know Jasons mom but I felt really sorry for him. All I could do right now is stand behind Jason and witness this heartbreaking scene.

"Mom?" Jason said with his eyes already turning red.

Elizabeth slowly opened her eyes in response to Jasons voice, although it seemed as if she was struggling just to keep her eyelids open. A smile slowly formed on the Megainiums face before she weakly said "Jason, it's nice to see you're still not angry at me." Angry?

"Mom I was… I was never angry at you." Jason said with tears already rolling down his cheeks.

The intense waves of sadness from Jason were just too much for me to bear, that I began to have tears as well. However I felt another intense wave of sadness similar to Jasons but a little bit stronger. It was coming from Arthur. Even though Arthur's sadness was stronger he showed no sign of it. He just stood there like a golem, overseeing the scene from the other side of the bed.

"Oh yes you were, and you have every right to. Jason, I just want to let you know that… I trust you, and I always have. I should've given you more freedom. You see, ever since your father died I was so worried that I might loose you. You acted more like him everyday. It was like if, you were him. You are the only thing that reminds me of him, and if I lost you then I would loose your father as well." Elizabeth said.

"Mom I… I'm sorry." Jason wiped away his tears before he continued "Please just, don't go. I…I don't want to loose you too. I won't know what to do; you can't just leave me with an entire region to look after!"

Elizabeth then broke out into several violent coughs before saying "Jason I understand what your thinking, in fact I felt like you when I was about to be queen, even your father had the same fear when he fell in love with me. Look when I felt like you, your father told me this, don't run away from your future sometimes you just have to stick with the path you're already walking on. After he said that, I knew that I couldn't just walk away from my biggest responsibility. Jason, without a ruler, everyone in the region wouldn't know what to do, it would be total chaos. It's your turn to become Naru's next ruler, to make the right decisions, and to keep order throughout the region."

"But mom! I don't think I'm ready for this!" Jason said.

Elizabeth smiled before saying "You may think that your not ready, but the when moment you think you are truly ready to become king comes, then, everything, will be all right." Her breathing then began to get deeper. "Oh, who's this?" Elizabeth said finally noticing me standing behind Jason. Okay what the heck, am I invisible here? "Come closer please." She said kindly.

I stepped forward and knelt down besides Jason "Um, my name is Elana, I'm a friend of your son." I shyly said.

Elizabeth chuckled before saying "It's nice to see that my son has made a nice friend. Jason is she going to be your mate?" As soon as she said that, I felt my face grow suddenly warm with embarrassment. When I turned to see Jason's reaction to Elizabeth's question, I was relieved to see that I wasn't the only one who was blushing, although his face had a deeper shade of red than mines. I didn't know if she was serious or if she was just joking.

An awkward silence then filled the air before Jason spoke up "Um, mom please don't say that."

"What, I was just asking." Elizabeth said with a grin. "So Elana, what do you think of my son?"

"What do I think of him?" I asked, Elizabeth answered with a quick nod. That question came out of nowhere; I guess that I might as well give her an answer. "Well, I think he's a great friend, he's kind of fun to be with." I think "Um and I think I feel like if I'm always looking out for him."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jason asked whilst turning his attention towards me.

"In case you haven't noticed, it seems as if you need my help every time you get hurt." I said with a smile.

"No I don't! Name one time I needed your help!" Jason said with a frown. Oh this should be good.

"Okay lets see here, there was that time when I pulled that knife out of your shoulder, the time I healed your broken leg, and not too long ago I healed your injuries from a fight you recently had."

"… I don't remember any of those times." I win! Elizabeth then cleared her throat, shifting our attention back to her "Oh sorry." Jason said.

"Just keep looking after him; will you do that for me?" She said to me. I nodded in response while Jason mumbled something to his side. "It's almost time for me to go now, I can feel it. Jason, remember what I said and, please take care. Remember, I love you." That was the last thing she said before she slowly closed her eyes, and took one, last, deep breath, entering a sleep that she would never come out of.

"Mom? …Mom are you there?" Jason asked once again. No response. Jason sorrowfully looked down and quietly said "I love you too."

* * *

><p>When Jason, Arthur and I left the room, we left with faces of sorrow. Arthur nodded to the two Shellmets who were guarding Elizabeth's room, who then nodded back and entered the room. They're probably going to get rid of Elizabeth's body.<p>

By the time we got to the elevator, Arthur turned to me and Jason before saying "Elana, Jason, don't talk about what happened tonight to anyone. We don't know what kind of effect this would have on the Pokemon outside of these walls. Plus, if the other regions find out that Naru has no leader, then they might take advantage of this time. Do you two understand?"

I nodded, however Jason had a different response "Yeah I understand, but, what do you mean if Naru has no leader? If mom died then wouldn't that make me the king?"

"… I'm sorry Jason, but you're not ready to be king."

"What?" Jason said with a shocked expression.

"I thought that if the king or queen passes away, one of their siblings takes control of the region. Isn't that how it's supposed to work, or am I missing something here?" I asked in a confused tone.

Arthur hesitated before finally saying "Yes that is how it works, but, Jason is a different case."

"Since when did you decide who becomes king?" Jason asked with a hostile look beginning to form on him.

"You haven't learned everything you need to know about being a king, you clearly don't have the responsibility of being one if you're always leaving the palace!"

"Then who's going to lead Naru then?" Jason shouted.

"No one at the moment, but I will make the decisions for Naru while you learn how to."

"Oh so your making yourself the king?"

"…I'm not the king, but someone has to lead this region." With that said Arthur pressed the button to call the elevator. What I don't understand is why cant Arthur just use the teleporter right next to the elevator. "Elana, you can stay in one of the guest rooms for tonight if you want. Jason, show Elana where she will be staying in, and were done talking about this." Before Jason could object, the elevator doors opened and Arthur stepped inside immediately. All Jason did is look at Arthur with a hateful look while the elevator doors slowly closed. I could feel Jason's anger rising at a fast rate; he's starting to worry me now.

"Jason… are you al-" Before I could finish, Jason threw a punch at the elevator door, leaving a big dent in it. "Whoa calm down!"

"It's not fair! He's not the king; he doesn't make decisions around here!"

"Jason calm down." I said in a calm voice. Jason took a deep breath before he finally calmed down, although I felt no change in his anger.

"He's been making every decision in my life, now he decides that I shouldn't be king. He probably just wants the power."

"That doesn't make sense; Arthur doesn't seem like that kind of person."

"He could be." Jason said quietly. He left me speechless after he said that, this was not the Jason I knew. There was one thing that I didn't quite understand though.

"Why do you want to be king all of a sudden? I thought you hated everything about this."

Jason sighed before saying "That was before, now it's different. Mom was right, I can't just run away from my future, if I do then I'm just leaving everyone behind with no idea what to do. I just don't know how to continue on with my future if Arthur doesn't believe I'm ready for it." I felt like if I should say something right now to lift Jason's spirits, the problem is that I don't know what to say. Jason sighed before saying "I'm going to bed now, let me show you to your room."

We then headed down the hallway on the opposite side of Elizabeth's room until we reached the end of it. The door at this end looked the same as the other but I knew what was behind it. Instead of going through the door, Jason opened a door next to it.

"This is where you're going to be staying for the night, if you need anything then just knock on my door. Breakfast will be served in the dining room in the morning. Okay?" Jason said.

"Okay I got it." I answered. I never really wanted to stay here for the night, but after seeing what was inside this palace, how could I say no. Jason nodded and went off to his room while I went through mines.

The room I was staying in was not as marvelous as Elizabeth's or Jason's, but it was still great. There was not as many decorations as the others, just a few paintings of landscapes hanging on the walls and a really large circular bed similar to the one Elizabeth was in. I let out a loud yawn before jumping in the bed and used my Psychic to flip the light switch. The bed was softer than it looked; it felt like if I was lying down on the clouds. Soon enough I fell into a deep sleep that lifted all my worries away.

* * *

><p>I woke up in annoyance to the sound of shouting coming from outside my room. Oh Arceus who could be shouting at this time of day? I rubbed my eyes and got out of my bed, and then I sluggishly made my way towards the door. I really wanted to go back to sleep, but I knew that was already too late now that I was out of bed. When I opened the door I saw Jason and Arthur arguing with each other down the hall. Great this should be good. Seconds later Arthur and Jason left in opposite directions, Arthur left towards the elevator while Jason left in my direction. I was curious of what they were arguing about, so I walked out into the hallway and waited for Jason to come up to me.<p>

"What was all that about?" I asked. At first Jason said nothing "Is it about that thing yesterday?"

Jason hesitated before saying "It's the Nothern Region… they're launching a sea invasion."

**A/N: Alright everyone, tell me what you think so far, who do you like and who do you don't like, and what do you think will happen next, please review. Still looking for a Beta reader by the way, I feel like if I'm not using the correct words.**


	7. Diving Into The Fire

**A/N: I am so terribly sorry for the delay everyone. I said that I would explain my reason why I have not updated recently on my profile page, so here it is. Me and my family had to move across the whole country because of a promotion my mom got. I wanted to get this chapter up before the day we move, but the computer I use was packed ahead of time. I'm really scared being in a place I hardly know but I hope that will change soon enough. There are still boxes around me but at least I got the computer set up to finish this thing.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, Gamefreak does and I think Nintendo does too. I just own the characters and the plot here.**

Chapter 6: Diving into the fire

**Jason's P.O.V.**

"They're launching a sea invasion," I repeated.

"What?" Elana said disbelievingly. "Was that what you and Arthur were arguing about?" I really didn't want to answer that, I was just too angry about the fight I had with Arthur right now, but I know Elana would keep bugging me until I told her.

"Yeah," I said, hoping the simple answer would be enough for her.

"But, how could you two be arguing about that?"

I didn't exactly know how explain the argument to Elana, but I had to say something. "Arthur came up to my room and said that the Northern region is going to attack Naru, and he wants me to stay here while he goes to a fort up north to repel the attack. This is my chance to prove to him that I am ready to be king! If I go to the fort with him then I could-" unfortunately that was all I could say before Elana interrupted with a loud voice that left my ears ringing.

"Are you crazy! You think Arthur will say, alright you could be king, just by taking part in a fight!" Elana shouted.

"It's the only way I could show him! My dad took part in many wars; Arthur just might see me like him."

"You're not like your dad! I don't really know your dad, but I know you're not like him."

"I may not be like him, but I'm still going to do something about this," I said while walking towards the teleporter. I don't care if Arthur said that I couldn't come with him, I was determined to get to the fort that he was going to and show him I can take control.

"Uh, where are you going?" Elana asked.

"None of your business."

"It's my business now; tell me where you are going," Elana demanded. I ignored her and continued my way towards the teleporter. "Hey! Excuse me!" she shouted from across the hall. At this point, she began to follow me.

I then began to pick up my pace; I was now halfway there to the teleporter. I turned back to see how close Elana was to me; she was about ten feet away from me. "Elana, please don't follow me," I said in an annoyed tone.

"Just tell me where you're going, then I will stop following you." Arceus, she's annoying! I ignored her once again and seconds later, she stopped!

_She must have given up, _I thought. Unfortunately, I was terribly wrong. With a flick of Elana's hand, she placed a psychic barrier in front of me, which I crashed into with the tip of my muzzle. "Ow!" I cried out. When I crashed into that psychic barrier, it felt like if I ran into a brick wall! I staggered back rubbing my snout, looking at the barrier she set up. It looked like clear glass with a tint of pink… really hard glass with a tint of pink.

Elana then came up to me, put up a smile and said, "I don't give up that easily." Damn psychics, probably my least favorite type, they're always reading your mind like an open book. We stood there for what seemed like hours, me rubbing my snout while Elana was tapping her foot impatiently. "I can do this all day," she said.

"…Okay fine!" I shouted. I was really starting to hate Elana's guts at that moment. I sighed before saying, "If I tell you, will you please stop following me for a second?"

"I promise," Elana said, ceasing her foot tapping.

"Okay…there are a couple of trucks outside and they're shipping supplies to the fort. If I could sneak on one of them, then Arthur will have no choice but to let me help him repel the attack."

"Or he could just stick you in a cell," Elana commented. I then shot Elana an angry glance.

"I told you where I'm going, so can you put the barrier down now?"

"Would it hurt to say please?" Elana said in a childish way.

… No, I have to hold back, just hold back a little longer, and then I can take my anger out on something. "Please." I muttered with a hint of hostility.

"What was that?" Elana said with a giggle.

Okay, now I know she likes to see me mad. "Please," I said louder, without the hostility changing in my voice. Elana grinned before making the psychic barrier disappear.

I then continued my way towards the teleporter "Thank you," I muttered.

"You're welcome," Elana said in a cheerful tone.

When I stepped on top of the teleporter and pressed the button to take me to the bottom floor, I took one last look at Elana. There she was, still standing at where she held me up, still looking beautiful as ever. You know, when I began to think about Elana's appearance, all my anger towards her vanished in an instant. It seemed like if time stood still for this very moment. How elegant she looked in that gown of hers, how beautifully her hair curved (I think I might have to ask her how gardeviors keep their hair like that), but overall what really captivated me was her eyes. Oh, how beautiful she looked with those sapphire eyes. Why do I keep thinking about her like this? Why do I always blush whenever I make contact with her? Is… is this a new feeling… for someone I just met? It felt like a warm pleasant feeling inside me, and I could not remember feeling anything like this before. Wait a minute! I hate her! Why the heck am I thinking like this?

I felt the electric current go through my body and soon enough I found myself on the first floor. _Alright, focus on the task at hand, _I thought to myself. I made my way towards the front door, cautious of any guards nearby. Once I got there I slowly opened the door, only just enough for me to look through it. Outside were guards scrambling all over the place, moving large wooden crates into army trucks, and getting inside the back of trucks as well. I knew right away that this wasn't going to be easy. At the sight of all this, it's nearly impossible to sneak past without a guard catching a glance at me. _Come on, think Jason, there must be a way, there's always a way. _I scanned the area, planning my route towards one of the trucks with supplies. However, I didn't have enough time to plan anything out before I heard footsteps behind me. Since the front opens from inside, I quickly opened it all the way and hid behind it.

Seconds later, not only did the echoing footsteps come closer but sounds of struggling came as well, and then I heard a loud crash not far from where I was hiding. "Ow! My foot!" a young voice said. "What the hell's in this box?"

"I don't know! How am I supposed to know?" Another young voice similar to the first one answered. "You know what, lets just get a Machoke to help us with this."

"Yeah, let's just do that," The first guard agreed.

I then heard their footsteps coming towards the front door. My heart was now pounding; if they decide to close the door then not only would I attract everyone's attention but also my whole plan would be ruined. I waited, and waited for what was sure to come. It never came. To my relief, I heard their footsteps fade way once they passed me. Good. I stepped out of my hiding spot and saw a large wooden crate sitting in the middle of the hall. _What could be so heavy to keep two guards struggling their entire way towards the truck?_ I wondered. I charged up my Leaf Blade attack and sliced off the top of the crate. To my surprise, there was nothing but weapons filled up halfway inside. "Wow, that's a lot of guns," I commented. "There's still enough room to put a Wailmer in here!" A smile crept up my face as an idea came into my head.

I picked up the top for the enormous crate and jumped inside it, placing the top in its rightful place at the same time. _Best idea yet._ Minutes passed before I heard the first sign of footsteps approaching. The two voices that belonged to the guards from earlier approached as well as a new one.

"Are you kidding me? You two can't even move this box?" a gruff voice said.

"Hey! It's a really heavy box!" the first young voice said.

"Just shut up and go do something," the Machoke (I'm guessing) said.

I felt myself being picked up almost instantly after the little conversation. I just know this plan is going to work perfectly… however, I just discovered one small flaw in my plan. _Shoot, I sliced off the top!_ If the Machoke carrying the crate were to somehow accidentally slip and drop me, then the top would easily come off, revealing myself to anyone watching. Oh, I prayed that wouldn't happen.

I began to hear shouting of several voices beginning to get louder; I must have been outside now. It wasn't long before I heard the sound of engines that began to get louder after every second that passed. I then felt myself being tossed carelessly and landed with a big thud. _I must be in the truck now._ I thought. However, I wasn't a hundred percent sure if I was inside a truck, so I slowly lifted the top, making a small opening for me to take a look around my surroundings. Yup, I was definitely inside a truck, one with no one else in it. However, when I popped out of my hiding place, a familiar feminine voice spoke up from behind which made me tense up.

"Yeah, you're in the truck alright. But I have one question." Oh, Arceus. Is it who I think it is? I slowly turned around to find myself looking at the one Pokemon I despised most at the moment. "Why couldn't you just ask me to teleport you in here?" Elana said, chewing on a Pecha berry.

"How the hell did you get in here?" I demanded, while still keeping my voice low enough so no one outside could hear.

"Um, teleporting. Duh." Elana said, taking a seat.

I rubbed my face before saying, "I thought you promised you would stop following me."

"I did… I promised that I would stop following you for a _sec_, I kept my promise," Elana said whilst popping the rest of the Pecha berry in her mouth.

"Why are you even here? You know this truck is heading towards the fort."

"Yeah, I know that. I'm here because I know you're going to end up running into a brick wall and knock yourself unconscious, if that happens then I'll be there to wake you up. After all, your mom _did_ tell me to look after you."

I sighed before saying, "I, don't, need, anyone to look after me! So just go home now!"

Elana put up a thoughtful look before answering with a smile. "Hmm, nope."

Before I could say anything else, I felt that the truck began to move. It was already too late for me to kick Elana out of the truck now. "You know what? Don't bother me until we get there. No, scratch that, don't bother me _ever_," I said before getting back inside the crate and putting the top back on. I might as well take a nap during the road trip.

"I'll wake you up when we get there," Elana called out to me.

You know what my thoughts were? Well I made this thought loud and clear just for Elana to hear. _Shut up!_

* * *

><p>I suddenly woke up when the truck hit a huge bump, making me hit my head on the wooden surface above me. "Son of a!" I cried out whilst rubbing the top of my head. Maybe riding inside a crate to avoid talking to Elana is not the smartest idea I've ever had.<p>

"Shoot no!" I heard Elana cry out. What could Elana be shouting about on this little road trip?

As I pushed the top off the crate for me to stick my head out, I caught a glimpse of Elana holding something small and brown before she quickly hid it under her lap. "Uh… what's that?" I curiously asked.

"Nothing, it's nothing!" Elana quickly said. Nothing eh? I think I found my sweet revenge.

"Okay then, whatever. I'm just going to get back inside my box," I lied. At first, I made it look like if I was going to reach for the top, but as soon as Elana pulled out whatever she was hiding under her lap, I snatched it away from her with blinding speed.

"Hey! That's mine!" Elana shouted. As she reached out for it, I held her back with my right hand while holding the item in my other hand, keeping both as far away from each other as possible. Now this looks familiar. "Jason! Give it back!"

"Oh, you don't like it do you?" I said with a grin. "Now you know how I felt when you held my cloak away from me."

After a minute of struggling, Elana soon gave up and sighed before saying, "Okay. What do you want?" Oh sweet, sweet revenge.

"I thought you don't give up that easily," I said without the grin on my face changing. Now she was glaring at me with daggers in her eyes, but I wasn't intimidated. "Okay, first say you're sorry for holding me up at the palace."

"… Sorry for holding you up at the palace," Elana said in a low mumble.

"Good now secondly…would it hurt to say please?" I mockingly said.

"… Please," Elana growled between clenched teeth.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" I said with a chuckle. This was just too good.

"Please." Elana said it louder this time, with a hint of hostility.

"You know, I'm starting to see why you like making me mad." After that came out of my mouth, Elana lost her patience and pulled me up by my bandana so I was at eye level with her. Now I was intimidated by her. "Okay here!" I quickly said, handing the item back to her.

"Thank you," Elana said whilst taking her item back and dropping me onto the ground.

"You're welcome," I coughed out whilst readjusting my bandana. Soon after I was done with that, I noticed what the item Elana had in her hands was. It looked like a brown leather notebook. I was curious about what was in the notebook she was hiding from me just now. "As I asked before, what is that?"

"As I said before, it's nothing," Elana said, sitting back down.

"Come on, what's the worst that could happen if you show me what's in there?"

"Are you asking the worst for me or the worst for you?" Elana threatened.

"Wow, looks like somebody didn't have their breakfast this morning," I commented. I then took a seat to the right of Elana and asked "Please?"

"No."

"Come on your going to be stuck with me for the rest of the ride, so you might as well show me what's in that notebook."

Elana sighed before saying "Okay fine."

"Really?"

"No." Yeah. This wasn't going to be easy.

Well, when I'm in a situation like this, I do the one thing that never fails me. I'm serious when I say this; I have been doing it since I was a treecko and its still works now. Okay, here it comes… puppy dog eyes. I held my hands together in front of me, drooped the leaf on my head, and slightly looked up to Elana. I could already tell Elana was trying to fight back the look, but she couldn't help but look at me.

"Okay fine, just stop doing that please!" she finally said. I complied and regained my normal posture. "Just please don't laugh or say anything, I don't like criticism." At first Elana hesitated before she finally opened the notebook in her lap. To my surprise, there were sketches of Pokemon and various different sceneries all done in pencil.

"Wow… these are really good," I commented. These sketches were incredibly amazing to me. The Pokemon in the notebook had so much detail that they seemed almost lifelike and just looking at the sceneries made me feel like if I were there. After every page, Elana showed me a sketch better than the last, until she stopped on a sketch of a Pidgey that had a line drawn across the body.

"Um, when we hit that last bump, I sorta messed up on this one," Elana explained.

"Is this, like, one of your hobbies?" I asked.

"Yeah, I like doing art. Its one of those things that helps me be at peace whenever I'm sorta stressed out."

"So is something bothering you right now?"

"No, I'm just bored," she simply said with a smile. After a few seconds later, Elana turned the page once more to reveal a sketch of a grovyle… an oddly familiar grovyle. Elana quickly closed the notebook with a bright red face before I could get the chance to identify the grovyle.

"Um, who was that?" I asked curiously. She didn't reply.

Before I got the chance to repeat my question, the truck we were in grinded to a halt. "Oh look, we're here," Elana quickly said, hoping to avoid my question. "So uh… how do we get out without attracting the army's attention?"

Great, the one thing I didn't plan on. Hiding back inside the crate would be pointless knowing that they were going to check it eventually. Oh well, I was planning on showing myself soon anyways. A few seconds later a Machoke climbed into the truck, noticing us almost immediately, he however just stood still. The three of us stood there for what seemed like hours until I broke the silence. "Uh… hi… this is kind of awkward isn't it?"

* * *

><p>"Are you serious Jason? Are you <em>serious<em> this time Jason?" Arthur shouted at me from behind his desk.

We were inside a small concrete room reserved only for the person in charge of the fort we were currently in. Just a while after Elana and I were found out, we were hauled off by a large group of soldiers who kindly showed our way into this cramped room. When I mean kindly, I mean shove us in here the whole way, the kind of royal treatment I think I should be receiving.

"Yeah I'm serious, what do you want me to do about it?" I answered. When Arthur opened his mouth to reply, I quickly said, "don't answer that."

Arthur sighed before saying, "I've told you before Jason, you can't fight in this one! No matter how many times you ask me the answer is still going to be no."

"Hey! I know how to fight! That should be good enough," I snapped back at him.

"You may know how to fight but you still don't know how to fight in a war. You don't even know how to fire a weapon for Arceus sakes." Arthur sat back in his chair before continuing. "Jason, in war you have to learn how to kill a guy before he kills you, and I know you're not the type of person who kills for a living. That's why everyone puts their faith in Pokemon like us to do that for them."

"I've killed before." I quietly said. There was a moment of silence after that came out of my mouth. Elana who was leaning in a corner behind me just stared in awe while Arthur did the same as well.

"What?" he asked, disbelief coloring his voice.

Before I could say any more, the door to the awfully cramped room abruptly opened, revealing a breloom trying to catch his breath in the doorway. "Sir," the Breloom said, giving a quick salute to Arthur.

"What is it?" Arthur asked.

"Northern warships have just spotted on the horizon. We estimate about two hundred ships approaching at full speed."

Arthur reached under his desk pulling out a black ballistic vest and army helmet that seemed like a perfect size for him. "Sound the alarm and get to your assigned position. Jason, Elana, you two stay here. No more arguing!"

"What? But that's not fair! I'm here so you might as well-"

"Enough!" Arthur shouted, cutting me off. I clenched my fist, doing my best to restrain myself from jumping up and attack Arthur in fury.

"There's more sir," the Breloom said after Arthur had finished putting on his gear. "The Iron Fist has been spotted as well."

"What? Are you positive?" Arthur asked in surprise. The Breloom nodded in response. "Vladislav's here?" The Breloom nodded once more. "Let's go and end it here now then." Arthur said whilst walking out the door and shutting it.

A moment of silence followed after the door was shut. How can he do this to me? I'm trying to do something good for once, and Arthur just had to keep me on the sidelines. Why can't he just see the potential I have in me? Almost all my ancestors were Pokemon who fought for their region! I was just about ready to unleash my fury on the desk in front of me with a Leaf Blade attack, until Elana tapped me on the shoulder.

"Jason, I know how you feel," Elana said in a calm voice. This surprised me, knowing that Elana had been placed in a position similar to mine.

"What, someone held you back before?" I asked.

"No, I know what you're feeling," Elana answered.

"Huh? If you were never held back, then how could you… oh right, Psychic." I said as I came into the realization of her type. I said it once and I would say it again… damn Psychics. "I don't like my emotions being read, you know."

"Hey I can't help it! It's not like I have control over whose emotions I read!" She exclaimed.

"What? I thought you Psychics can choose whose mind you want to mess with."

"Other Psychics can, but my species cant. We have absolutely no control on reading emotions!" Elana said, sitting down in a chair next to me. "It's all because of these damn things so don't blame me!" She said while pointing at the red spike on her chest.

As I looked at the spike on her chest, I realized what they do for the Ralts evolutions. I think I remember reading it in a book somewhere in the library. I felt guilty for talking to Elana like that, now that I know that she has no control over reading emotions. I sighed before taking a seat in a chair next to her, wishing that all my stress at the moment would just wash away magically.

"Jason… what did you mean when you said that you killed someone before?" Elana asked shyly.

"…Are you sure you want to know?" I asked quietly. Elana nodded in response.

"Fine…You know about that Hitmontop gang you met a couple of nights ago?"

"Yeah, why?" Elana asked, unsure of what I am about to say.

"… There was a sixth member to the gang, a fifth Tyrouge. One night… I met the Hitmontop gang for the first time. I was still a grovyle back then, and I knew how to fight like one. When met them, I was scared; I thought I was going to be pummeled to death that night. It wasn't long before they decided to attack me for whatever I got on me. The fight that I got in with them was the first one I have ever fought in. So when they dove in for me, I did what my instincts told me to do… fight for my life. During the fight, I felt something I had never felt before; I can't tell if it was either adrenaline pumping through my veins or excitement, though it was probably both. Everything was going along smoothly for me, but… I got a little carried away when I began to use my Leaf Blade attack. I swung and swung with my blades and… and."

The memory that was beginning to take form in my mind was starting to become too much for me to bear, it felt like if I was going through it all over again. I didn't notice it at first but I felt a tear beginning to form in my eye.

"And, what?" Elana asked, anxiously waiting to hear the rest of my sentence.

After long hesitation, I finally got the words out of my mouth. "I… I knocked him off the cliff. T-the Tyrouge just never gave up fighting and came in too close! I-I attacked with my Leaf Blade and he stumbled back! I don't know what happened. I couldn't find him over the cliff; it was like if he disappeared! After realizing what I did I… I ran, I ran away as fast as I could back to the palace." I felt the teardrop slowly roll down my face after I said that, all my emotions at that moment was in the form of that very tear. "I regret what I did that night, even to today I wish I never went out there in the first place."

I'm fine when it comes to everything else, but when it came to family, friends, or past experiences that leaves a big effect on my life, I just can't help but let my emotions take control of my body.

"He didn't deserve to die Elana… He may have had bad intentions but I know deep inside him… no deep inside all of them, that they all have good hearts. They're just doing what they think is right, that's all. None of them deserved to die," I finished.

"Wow I… I don't know what to say," Elana said with a look of awe on her face.

"You don't have to say anything. I'm just glad that I got the chance to tell someone my story instead of keeping it to myself all this time. Thanks." After telling Elana my past experience I felt like if a load was taken off my back. I felt… relieved, finally being able to share it with someone without the fear of them going crazy over the subject. But what I don't know is why I trust her enough to share my secrets with her.

Elana said nothing else; all she did after that was take occasional glances at me. I wonder what she was thinking at the moment. Was she thinking about the situation we were in? Was she thinking about the fact that we are about to be in the middle of a war zone? Or was she thinking about me?

* * *

><p>Vladislav is a very paranoid walrein; he could never have enough protection around him. He always feared for his safety during his travels, but of course, no one but his closest friends knew about this. Vladislav cannot afford to let the whole world see through wall of lies he has constructed, to see the coward he truly is. Therefore, he tries to act like any other leader would under the protection of his guards; he just has a little more protection than a normal king would. But on the Iron Fist, his flagship on the seas, he doesn't feel safe in it at all. He always feared the explosion that would one day rock his ship and send it down to the depths of the abyss, though his ship rarely even is hit by anything at all!<p>

Whenever the thought of his ship sinking with him in it enters his mind, or thinks about anything else that has to do with his own death, he gets so nervous that you could see him sweating buckets. To calm his nerves in times like those, he drinks alcoholic beverages nonstop until the thoughts washes away. That is what he is doing right now in the confined space of his quarters, located deep within the Iron Fist.

He had just finished his third bottle of wine, letting the swaying movement of the ship shatter it on the ground once it was done. He still had dark thoughts of death in his mind, covering his mind like fog. Vladislav reached for another bottle in his secret stash, which is hidden under his desk, until he heard a familiar voice behind the door to his room.

"Vladislav, it's me Alexey! The Bisharp has come to do business with you!" Alexey shouted from the other side of the door.

"Not now, I'm busy!" Vladislav shouted back in an irritated tone. He then returned to his previous task, getting another bottle of wine for himself. When he did so, he had trouble in biting off the cork on the bottle.

"He says that he has important information regarding the prince!" This got Vladislav's attention. He has been waiting for news about the assassin he had sent to take care of the prince for quite a while now. He had almost concluded that the assassin might have been captured, probably for doing something stupid during the job.

"Send him in!" Vladislav finally said. He resumed in his attempt to bite the cork off to continue his drinking.

A Bisharp came in as the door opened to Vladislavs quarters. A look of disgust was on the Bisharps face as he saw what was before him. Quietly, he took a seat in front Vladislavs desk, waiting for the Walrein to finally notice him sitting there. "Having trouble?" the Bisharp inquired with his deep raspy voice.

"Huh? Oh, yes," Vladislav said, finally noticing the dark knight sitting in front of him.

"Can you open this damn thing?" he asked as he handed the Bisharp the bottle of wine.

Irritably, the Bisharp took the bottle from the Walrein. Quickly, he stuck the tip of his blade into the cork and popped it out without a problem. The Bisharp then handed Vladislav back his drink, but not before taking a sip out of the bottle himself. "Happy?" he asked.

Vladislav just grunted in response, taking the drink back in his possession. "I've heard that you have important information for me, Khez. It is about the prince, yes?"

"Hold on Vlad, first things first. I expect the payment for my previous job from you," Khez said.

"… Sometimes I wonder why I even have your organization working for me," Vladislav said, though he still pulled out a large bag from under his desk and handed it to Khez.

"That's because we're the best anyone could have. Your just lucky that you're the highest bidder," Khez said as he set the bag to his side, making a loud clinking sound as it touched the floor.

"Eleven million Poke, just as I promised. Now about that information comrade."

"Ah yes, the boy. I'm guessing your assassin never returned?" Khez asked.

"… Yes, he never came back, and I'm guessing you know something about it?" Vladislav asked, anxious to hear about the news.

"Hehe, your friend not only got captured by Narus officials, but failed in his assignment," Khez said with a smirk.

"What?" Vladislav shouted. "I wanted Naru powerless! I want their spirit to be broken! Now because he had failed I might have to withdraw my fleet!"

"Hold on a second Vlad, you just came here all the way from the north, and just like that you're just going to go running back because of some unfortunate news? I say, don't go back. Don't go back until you have earned the honor from battle that you northerners value," Khez said. He leaned forward before continuing. "I've seen this boy before and I know you have nothing to fear from him. He doesn't have what it takes to lead his region to victory. He has no experience from battle, so why should you worry? After all, he is just a boy. Let me deal with him, I'll make sure he doesn't see the light ever again."

Vladislav thought for a moment, thinking of his next course of action. Finally, he sighed and said, "Fine, you deal with the prince while I continue my attack. I'll give you another eleven million once it's-"

"I want a hundred million for this one," Khez interrupted.

"What?" Vladislav shouted in outrage. "I'd rather send another one of my men after him!"

Khez chuckled before saying, "Tell me Vlad, how badly you want the boy dead? Or better yet, how soon do you want him dead?"

Vladislav thought over it for a moment before coming up with his answer. "Fine, it's a deal. But I want him gone from the face of the earth! You hear me?"

Khez chuckled before replying. "You won't be disappointed," he said with a bow. As he made his way for the exit, he stopped in the doorway and turned around so that he was facing Vladislav. Khez then raised his right arm so that it was pointing at Vladislav, using his other arm to pull out a pair of black shades from behind him, which he put on. "You'd best have the money ready the next time you see me."

"Dead Dragon scum," Vladislav spat when he heard Khez's footsteps fade away down the hall. He looked into the bottle of wine he had in front of him. He thought about what would happen after his victory over Naru. Would he still be alive after all this? Would he survive a war with the warlords of the pacific? Would he even survive this battle? Those were the thoughts that circled his mind. "I will not disappoint you father. I will avenge you for what they've done to you," he said quietly to himself before he took a sip from his bottle.

"My king," the familiar voice known as Alexey spoke from the doorway.

Vladislav didn't notice it before but after his conversation with Khez, a glalie has been patiently waiting for Vladislav to notice him floating in the doorway. All the glalie wore was a blue general army cap that bears the symbol of the Northern Region on the front of it. "What have you got for me Alexey?" Vladislav asked after he finished taking a drink from his bottle.

"The fleet is in position, they are awaiting orders," Alexey informed.

Vladislav set the bottle of wine down before saying, "give out the order to open fire on the fort."

"Yes my king, I will give out the order immediately," Alexey said before floating off into the hallway.

"Hold on!" Vladislav called out. Within seconds, the glalie returned to Vladislavs quarters, waiting to hear what else he had to say to him. "Tell the Demon Ptitsa that she may catch her prey now."

"A-Are you sure my king?" Alexey asked as if Vladislav was crazy.

"Yes, I'm positive. She is loyal to our cause and me. I know she will not cross me as long as I give her something to kill. Release her so that the Naruians will not only feel her wrath, but mines as well."

**A/N: Again, I would like to apologize for this update for being so late. I would also like to thank my beta reader Xamem-The Heart of Oblivion for editing this chapter. So uh yeah, please review this story whenever you feel like it and have a great day!**


	8. The Choices In His Hands

**A/N: Its time for chapter 7 people! I should have mentioned this in the last chapter, but in the last part of chapter 6 Vladislav mentioned about the Demon Ptitsa (pronounced pt-ee-tsa) which is Russian for demon bird. Since the northerners origin is pretty much Russian, I might as well be creative and include Russian language in the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, Gamefreak does, I just own the characters and the plot here.**

Chapter 7: The Choices in His Hands

**Elana's P.O.V.**

"Jason, since when were you get into lock picking?" I asked, staring at what was unfolding before me.

"When I couldn't take being locked up in here anymore, why?" Jason said as he attempted to pick the lock on the door with his blades.

"Oh, nothing," I answered.

We had been in this concrete office for about half an hour, bored to death with nothing to do, and I think I was starting to get a little claustrophobic from being in here. However, Jason's attempt at lock picking was enough to amuse me for a while. I could feel Jason getting frustrated, still rising at steady rate. From the looks of things it seems as if Jason has never done this kind of thing before, because what was happening before me was just plain sad. _There's absolutely no way he could get that door open, _I thought.

"Wait, do you hear that?" Jason asked.

"Hear what?" I asked, having no idea what Jason was talking about.

"Shh, listen," Jason ordered. I kept quiet and listened carefully for even the slightest sound, but all I could hear was the soft patter of footsteps in the hallway outside of the office. I was about to tell Jason that he must have imagined it but before I could, I heard a series of soft explosions coming from outside. "It sounds like it's coming from that direction," Jason said, pointing at the concrete wall on the side opposite from the door.

We slowly walked towards the other end of the room to hear the explosions better. _What could those explosions be? _I thought, curious.

"They don't sound like Pokemon moves. It sounds more like… cannon fire," Jason said.

_He must be right, _I thought, _it does sound a lot like cannon fire. _After listening to the constant explosions that seemed to be beginning to shake the room, I also heard the sound of waves hitting a beach. "I hear waves. Wait; is this fort on a beach?" I asked curiously.

"Yes, it's on a beach, you never knew?"

"No, not really, I only saw trees outside."

"Well, this is the only fort in Naru that's… wait, do you hear that?" he asked once more.

"Ugh, what is it this time?" I said in an annoyed tone, tired of these guessing games.

"Shh!" Jason said, shutting me up.

This time I didn't have to listen closely to hear what Jason was talking about. What I heard was a loud hissing noise that began to sound like if was coming closer towards us. It didn't sound like anything I've ever heard before, although it did sound a lot like the whistle a firework would make. Jason's eyes widened as he opened his mouth to say something, but before he could a loud explosion broke through the wall, knocking us both down on the floor.

I was barely even conscious after the explosion, heck I felt as if a car had just rammed me. My ears were ringing, I was covered in white dust and I could barely even move my arms. I was in a state of confusion; I was trying to figure out what had just happened right now. I also noticed that there was a cool breeze coming from in front of me. I struggled to sit up to find myself staring at the wall me and Jason were trying to listen through, which now had a huge hole in it. Through the hole, I could see the blue ocean and its waves crashing violently against the rocks on the shore in front of me. What I also saw were countless small grey objects on the horizon of the ocean that seemed to give off a constant of orange flashes.

After I took that moment to look at my new surroundings, I realized that Jason was kneeling in front of me trying to get my attention. It seemed as if he had been yelling at me for quite a while now, though I couldn't really hear what he was saying due to the annoying ringing in my ears that was too stubborn to go away. It looked like if Jason was repeating my name over and over. I thought nothing would get this irritating ringing out of my head… until Jason slapped me across my right cheek, which snapped my hearing back to normal.

"Damn it Elana, tell me you're all right!" Jason shouted, which brought a small amount of ringing to my ears.

Another thing you should know about me is that nobody touches me like that, if you slap me, then you're just asking for it. So my response to Jason was a slap across his face. "Yes, I'm fine," I said angrily, staring daggers into his eyes.

Jason was stunned by my action, but he shook his head and said "Okay, good. You're alright."

As Jason pulled me back on my feet, I saw a small cylinder shaped object leaving a trail of smoke heading towards us. Jason was unaware of the object pointing directly at his back so I yelled, "Jason look out!" and tackled Jason to the ground to avoid the projectile. We landed on the rocky shore right outside of the office just before the projectile burst into a fiery explosion, turning what was left of the office into rubble. Of course, landing on a shore of rocks was painful but it was better than staying in the room and being killed.

"Ow, my back!" Jason cried out. After I opened my eyes from the pain I had just endured, I found out that I was still on top of Jason, holding him close to me. Not only that, but I ended up making Jason land on back on the rugged rocks.

_Better him than me, _I thought to myself. Oh, but how could I think of something like that at a time like this! "Oops, sorry! Are you okay?" I apologized.

As Jason slowly opened his eyes, a smile slowly crept on his face. "I am now," he quietly said to himself.

"What?"

"I mean, yes I am!" Jason quickly said, with his face changing to more of a panicked look to it. I got off Jason and pulled him back on his feet. "Ow, my back feels weird," he said, pushing his talon like hands against his back.

"Um, that's how you're supposed to feel when you fall off a building from ten feet. And I don't think you should be-" before I could finish, I heard a loud repulsive popping noise coming from Jason.

"Ohhh, that felt good," Jason moaned.

"… That's disgusting; do you want to get arthritis?" I asked accusingly.

Before Jason could say anything, a loud ear-piercing screech came from above us. It sounded somewhat like a combination of nails on a chalkboard and a screech that a Braviary would make as it spots its prey. As the ear-piercing screech ended, we looked above us and found a large, dark grayish, metal bird hovering above us. It didn't even look like a Pokémon; in fact, it looked a lot like an eagle. However, I knew it was more a machine than an animal. It was about twice my size, eyes glowing red as if it was possessed, a bunch of weird gadgets attached from under and on top of its wings, and hot steam coming from its mouth as if something was burning from within it. It looked like if it hadn't noticed us yet, instead it had its attention directed towards the concrete fort.

"Caw! Fury! Feel my fury! Help me quench my lust for battle!" it shouted out in a voice that sounded both feminine and demonic. One set of gadgets from under its wings popped open and fired two small cylinder objects at the fort, which created a fiery explosion that threw debris in all directions. This thing was probably the one that attacked us in the office! "Caw! Feel my rage, my anger, my hatred! I thrive on it all!" it shouted once more.

Jason and I stared up at it in awe. I'm sure neither of us has seen such an abomination like this metal eagle before. It was something that would strike fear into anyone's heart on first sight. I was scared, strangely though, Jason was not. I felt no trace of fear coming from him, not even the slightest hint of fear, just astonishment.

"What the hell?" Jason said quietly, only loud enough for me to hear.

The metal bird then turned its attention down at us, as if it heard Jason.

"Oh crap," Jason cursed to himself.

"Way to go genius," I commented, rolling my eyes.

"Caw!" the metal bird cried out before swooping down to catch us as if we were its prey.

My body grew stiff at the sight of my death swooping down to catch me. I couldn't move, I couldn't move because fear had taken complete control over my body. It was as if I was in a different world, a world where no movements were permitted there. Was this the end for me? Is my time finally up?

"What do you think you're doing!? Don't just stand there, move!" Jason shouted at me before tackling me out of the way. Jason was fast, but he wasn't fast enough and only barely avoid the full fury birds attack. Jason winced in pain as the metal talons of the giant bird grazed his backside, leaving a deep long red line across his left shoulder.

This all seemed so familiar, I felt like if I've relived this moment before. It was until then

I had a flashback of my haunting past.

"_What do you think your doing!? Don't just stand there, move!" a familiar looking Grovyle shouted at me before tackling me out of the way of a barrage of attacks._

"Carlson!?" I said aloud.

"What, who's Carlson?" Jason asked in confusion as he set me back on my feet.

"Um, n-nobody," I stuttered. That moment was forgotten as soon as the metal bird made its presence known by screeching once more.

"Come back here you little weed! I'm not done tearing you apart yet!" it cried out.

Jason then jumped in front of me and dropped into his fighting stance. "Elana get out of here!" Jason commanded. As the metal bird took a step forward, Jason readied his leaf blades.

"No way, I'm not leaving this fight!" I protested. However, I changed my mind as the bird screeched out into the skies; this screech was louder than its previous ones. "Good luck Jason it's been nice knowing you," I quickly said in one breath while I was swiftly walking away. However, the bird had other plans for me.

The metal bird then flew up into the air and swooped down with its talons open to catch us. Jason dodged this move by performing a back flip over the bird at an amazing height. I however was not as agile as Jason, nor did I have good reflexes, so I was easily swooped up by the bird. The metal bird sure did have a tight grip on me, but it wouldn't hurt if it loosened its grip on me a little. I was panicking; I was scared from being at an amazing height. I always thought that flying would make you feel free, but now I take that back, flying is _scary _as heck at the speed that the giant bird was going!

"Elana!" Jason called out with worry.

"Jason, get me down from here!" I shouted back, struggling to escape the birds claws.

"You want her? Then why don't you come and pry her out of my claws!" the demonic bird taunted as it hovered above the ground, waiting for Jason to make his move.

Jason just stood there with an angry look on his face, though at the same time he looked like he was thinking. This bird obviously had a trick up its sleeve if it wants Jason to come near it.

_Elana, do you know the move Thunderbolt? _Jason asked me in his mind.

_Uh, yeah. Why? _I answered back.

_Use it now! _Jason immediately said in his mind.

I pondered over why Jason would want me to use Thunderbolt on the bird; didn't he know that if I used the move I'd be fried as well? While I was thinking about this, Jason used Quick Attack to make his way over where I was.

I didn't know how to react with the little time Jason gave to me. _Should I avoid using Thunderbolt on the metal bird to save my skin? Or should I just use the move to not only electrify the bird but myself as well? _There had to be a reason why Jason wanted me to use Thunderbolt. Maybe I have to trust Jason on this one. _Yes, I have to trust him, I know he has a trick up his sleeve; he'll somehow get me out of the birds grasp before the Thunderbolt meets its mark. Okay, here goes nothing, I'm putting my faith in you Jason._

I did as Jason commanded; I focused my powers and summoned a Thunderbolt overhead the metal bird. By the time it noticed it, it was already too late. The Thunderbolt met its target, frying it to a crisp… however, it wasn't the only one that was electrified in the attack. I was also shaken up by the jolt of electricity. By the time the Thunderbolt disappeared, the metal bird released its grip on me while it flew upward to avoid us. Now I was falling from the height that the bird has taken me, fearing the worst that had yet to come for me.

But before I even touched the ground, Jason made it just in time to save me from my death. He managed to catch me in his arms bridal style.

I certainly didn't like the way I looked at that point. There were burn marks on me, black smudges all over my gown (I think it was oil from the mechanical bird), but worst of all my hair was puffed out in the shape of a ball! I looked like a total mess.

"What the heck Jason! I thought you were going to get me _before _the Thunderbolt hit the bird!" I shouted furiously into Jason's ears (or where I thought his ears were).

"No, the idea was to stun the bird so that it would let go of you," Jason snapped back at me, struggling to support my weight.

"Didn't you know that I'd get hurt as well!?"

"Hmm, no I didn't think that would happen. But it sure is funny to see you like this," Jason said with a chuckle.

Oh, that did it. In my fury, I slapped Jason across his left cheek, which left Jason stunned by my action.

"Can you put me down now?" I said impatiently.

A tint of red appeared on Jason's face as he realized he was still holding me in his arms, so he quickly laid me back on my feet. _Idiot, _I thought to myself as I tried my best to regain my normal look. However, the blush on Jason's face soon disappeared as he looked up into the sky. I noticed that he was looking at the metal bird, which was struggling to flap its wings in the air. I think the attack may have paralyzed it.

"Elana, hide!" Jason said quickly as he pulled me behind a large jagged rock formation. The rock formation was only big enough to hide Jason's size so I had to crouch next to him. _I guess this ride isn't over for me yet._

The metal bird soon gave up in trying to stay up in the air, seeing that it was pointless in the condition it was in, and landed onto the rocky shore not far from where we were.

"Where are you two hiding!?" it screamed out. "You two cannot hide from me! I am a hunter, you are my prey! I'll track you down, like the animals you are!" it screamed once more. Oh Arceus, that thing just doesn't want to shut up! "Ready or not, here I come!" it called out to us.

The metal bird then began throwing the larger rocks of the shore against the concrete wall of the fort in fury. It was only a matter of time before it would find us. I couldn't even imagine of what would happen if we were to get caught by it. Fear was starting to take over my body once more, my breathing became heavy, my entire body was shaking, my heart was beginning to beat rapidly, and I was beginning to sweat from fear. I couldn't even think straight. I suppose this was a new experience for me, never have I ever been so close to death where it would just simply touch me. Oh, how I wished I were back in my warm comfy cabin back in the forest, back where it was all peaceful and quiet. Jason however didn't even show the slightest sign of worry or fear, just determination and calmness.

Jason then noticed the state I was in, for the first time today he showed worry, worry towards me. Jason placed his claw like hand over my chest and said, "Calm down, take deep breaths and calm down," he instructed.

"Well, that's easy for you to say!" I said in a hushed whisper.

"Look, close your eyes, and block out everything from your mind," Jason said in a calm voice.

Ha, he's telling me to stay calm in a situation, where a giant demonic bird is restlessly trying to find our hiding spot and possibly rip us to shreds when it does. If he's telling me to stay calm in a situation like that then he's out of his mind! But there wouldn't be a point if I didn't try his advice right? I closed my eyes, and tried my best to clear my mind from any thoughts or emotions within myself. It was hard at first with all the noise the bird was making, but somehow when Jason had his claw over my chest I felt more safe and calm. My heavy breathing was soon replaced by a steady breathing, I stopped sweating almost instantly, and my heart seemed to have returned to its usual beating. The only thing that was slightly altered was my shaking, even though I did what Jason wanted told me to do, I just couldn't get the fear out of my body completely.

"Are you alright?" Jason asked.

I opened my eyes to find myself looking the only person I could trust with my life now. Jason still had a look of worry over his face; he certainly didn't like to see me panicked.

"Yes, I-I'm fine," I answered.

Jason then got up and peered over the rock we were hiding behind. I was curious whether the bird was close to us or not, so I peeked over the rock as well. From what I saw, the metal bird was beginning to get close to our hiding spot. After I saw what I wanted to see, I crouched back down to avoid the risk of being caught.

"So uh, do you have a plan or something?" I asked, hoping for a good answer.

"Hmm, I may have one," Jason said thoughtfully. He then sat back down next to me after surveying the birds' activity before continuing. "Alright, that thing can't fly anymore. So that should give us a good advantage while it's still on the ground, though we still need to be careful; that thing is still as dangerous as it was before. Elana, I want you to go around from the right side of it and hide, I'll go from the left. When I start attacking, I want you to land as many Thunderbolts as you can on it. Got it?"

"Wait, you're seriously going to take that thing on?" I asked in shock.

"Well yeah, it's the only way we can get out of here alive," Jason answered as if he was sure of himself.

"You're crazy!" I said in a loud whisper. I was starting to have second thoughts about trusting Jason with my life now.

"Hey, I like the crazy side," Jason said with a grin. "See you on the other side then." With that said, Jason took off in his desired direction while using the rocks for cover.

I knew I wasn't given a choice in this situation, so I might as well listen to what Jason wants. It's strange though; Jason was acting like he knows what to do, almost as if he's been in the same situation a hundred times. I slowly crept across the rocky shore, keeping myself as low as possible to avoid the unwanted attention. With all this pressure on me, fear was starting to regain control over my body once more. I couldn't let that happen though, I didn't want to let Jason down when he's depending on me to help him out. I shrugged the fear off my back and continued towards my destination. When I arrived at the desired location, I peered over the rocks I was hiding behind and saw that the metal bird was still scavenging the area for us.

_I hope you know what you're doing Jason, _I thought to myself.

Then out of nowhere, a green blur sliced past the metal birds right wing, sending it stumbling backwards a few steps; it was almost as if the green blur slashed the bird somehow as it made its pass. I soon found out that the green blur was actually Jason when he skidded into a halt behind the metal bird.

"You weed, you'll pay for that!" the metal bird screamed out.

_I guess that's my cue. _In one deep breath, I mustered all my courage, jumped out of my hiding spot and summoned a Thunderbolt overhead the metal bird. I landed a successful hit, frying the bird once again, but when the attack ended, it turned its angry gaze at me. Right when the metal bird set its sights on me, I felt defenseless, knowing I couldn't do anything to avoid its attacks. Us Gardevoirs aren't known for being athletic, we were only known for protecting and fighting with our psychic powers. A fiery orb began to form in the birds' beak; it almost looked like an imitation of a flamethrower.

"Elana, teleport now!" Jason shouted at me.

Teleport? Oh duh, teleport! How could I have been so stupid to not realize my only escape from the machines attack? When the idea finally processed through my mind, the bird had already fired its Flamethrower in my direction. Without thinking, I teleported away from the stream of fire and placed myself to right side of Jason.

"Is that oil?" Jason asked curiously as he pointed at the black smudges on my gown.

"Yeah, are you blind?" I snapped.

Jason then looked at the metal bird, which was now making its way towards us with eyes filled with hatred.

"I think I have an idea," Jason said before he took off towards the bird.

When Jason got close to the metal bird, it tried to stomp its talon-like foot onto Jason, only to hit nothing but the rugged ground as he slid right under the bird. As Jason quickly got back on his feet, the metal bird then used its large talons to swipe at Jason only to miss once again when he gracefully performed a front flip, landing onto the birds back. Jason then latched his arms around the birds neck when he saw the opportunity in front of him, hanging on desperately as the beast thrashed about, attempting to throw Jason off its back. What Jason had done so far amazed me, I couldn't even think of a Pokémon crazy enough to take on a metal beast solo. I couldn't even imagine the Legendaries themselves pulling it off. Jason's fighting style was so graceful and skillful; I could even hear the thoughts of his next actions at a speed even I couldn't decipher.

"Get off of me!" the bird roared.

Jason then jumped off the birds back and landed inches in front of the bird, however the bird failed to notice this as it was in a state of confusion. The leaves on Jasons elbow then forged into one long glowing leaf in the shape of scythe as he smirked. When the bird finally noticed that Jason was standing right in front of it, it was already too late. Jason then began slashing at the birds chest in a rapid succession. His arms were moving at such an incredible speed that they were nothing but a glowing green blur to me. When Jason finally ceased, the bird attempted to swipe him once more only to miss again as he performed a back flip, landing by my side.

"Elana, Thunderbolt now!" Jason commanded.

I didn't even know the point of what Jason was doing then, was this some strategy he devised to weaken the bird? However, upon inspection of the damage inflicted on the birds chest, I saw several black smudges dotted across it; I even saw a small black puddle on the ground it was standing on. Oh, now I know what Jason was planning. He saw it leaking oil, so he figured if he could severely damage it enough it would spill enough oil for me to ignite with the spark of my Thunderbolt attack.

I did as Jason commanded and summoned one last Thunderbolt aimed at the bird. _If this doesn't stop it, I don't know what will. _Almost as soon as the Thunderbolt struck the bird, it was engulfed by a fiery explosion caused by the large amount of oil around it. I felt the intense heat of the explosion hit my face almost instantly, so rapidly that I had to shield myself with my arms from it. The metal bird gave out one last wretched screech as it drowned in the fire.

_Did we do it? Is it over? _I thought hopefully to myself.

Jason stared into the crackling fire, watching the burning corpse of the machine laying there, silently. Jason then turned to me and nodded as if he read my thoughts.

"Thank Arceus that's over," I said in relief.

But as we turned around to head back into the crumbling fort, I heard the movement of rocks and metal grinding against each other. We quickly turned around to find ourselves looking straight into the blood red eyes of the abomination we thought we defeated a second ago.

"Fools, you _dare _turn your back on me? You _dare _defeat the most feared creation in this world?" it questioned without using its usual loud voice. "I refuse to die! Not in the hands of some weed and a ballroom dancer!" it said as it began to flap its wings, steadily rising into the air.

_Ballroom dancer? That's a new one, _I thought.

Jason then got into his fighting stance in case the bird tried any tricks. To Jason and me this was quite a shock, what could possibly take down something that doesn't want to lose.

"Anger _always _comes back, rage _always _comes back, fury _always _comes back! I, the hunter, will return another day to track down its prey, you, my prey. I will not underestimate you animals the next time we encounter, and the next time we meet, I will make sure you two will be bathed in a puddle of your own blood!" The bird began flapping its wings harder and harder, taking it higher until it looked like a normal bird in the sky. "Caw!" it gave out its last cry before it retreated off into the direction of the warships in the horizon. Within seconds, it finally was out of sight.

I sighed in relief as I sat down on a nearby rock. Honestly, I thought we were in for another fight, but what troubled me was the possibility of meeting the monster again sometime soon. As Jason stood there staring out into the direction of the fleet in the horizon, I could feel that Jason had the same troubled thoughts as mine. He certainly wasn't looking for another run in with the bird as well.

I looked down at my gown, only to frown when I saw the mess that was still on me. "I'm going to need a bath when this is over," I commented.

Jason turned to me after my remark as if he just realized I was there. He then knelt down beside me and untied his red bandana. "Here, use this," Jason said as he handed his bandana to me.

"For what?" I asked curiously.

"To clean yourself, what else?"

"Are-are you sure?"

"Yeah I'm sure, I don't really need it," he assured.

I nodded and accepted the bandana from him. I was about to start rubbing the black smudges off my gown, until a sense of guilt came over me. _This is his, not mine, _I thought to myself. I felt a little guilty for using something that belonged to my friend to get rid of my worries. Using something just to make myself feel clean just didn't feel right.

"Maybe I'll wait until I find a shower somewhere," I said as I handed back Jason's bandana.

"Are you sure? There aren't any showers around here," he said.

"Yeah, I'm sure."

At first, Jason had a look on his face that said _okay, whatever you say_, but he shrugged it off as he accepted back his bandana. However, I noticed that Jason turned his attention back to the sea in front of us for some odd reason, as if he had caught a glance of something troubling. "Huh, it stopped."

"What stopped?" I asked.

"The cannon fire, they've stopped firing."

I turned to the sea as well to see that Jason was right, the constant yellow flashes from the ships in the distance seemed to have ceased. But for what reason? "Are they giving up?" I wondered.

"Yeah, looks like it," Jason said with a grin.

As if on cue, a familiar voice was heard calling out names behind us. We turned around to see Arthur accompanied by two Breloom by his side, coming out of the hole that used to be the small office. He had a worried look on his face, obviously concerned about our safety.

"Jason, Elana, are you two okay?" Arthur said with a hint of worry.

Jason irritably sighed before replying, "Yes we're fine, listen I-,"

Jason was cut off when Arthur abruptly spoke out. "Jason, I-I'm sorry I put you in danger right now. I should have never put you in that room, I should have been more patient and had someone escort you back at the palace. I mean that bird almost took you head off a few times!"

"I don't need…wait. You saw us with the bird?"

"Yes, from up there," Arthur said as he pointed at a top section of the fort. "As soon as I saw you two down here with that thing, I ran as fast as I could."

A smirk now formed on Jason's face. "Hmm, how much of the fight exactly did you see?" he asked curiously.

"Up until I saw you riding on the back of that thing. By the way, what the hell was going through your mind Jason?" Arthur shouted.

"A whole bunch of stuff that wouldn't even make sense if I told you," Jason answered with a bigger smirk.

Arthur sighed before saying, "Listen, we don't have time for this! Jason, Elana I need your help with the wounded, they're suffering real badly, come on!" he said as he motioned us to follow him.

"Wait, your actually letting me help you?" Jason said in disbelief.

"Yeah, are you deaf?" Arthur snapped.

A smile slowly crept up Jason's face. "Oh now I get it, after that fight you just saw right now you know I've got potential," Jason said as if it were something to be proud of.

"… Jason we don't have time for this. Hurry up you two!" Arthur said as he stormed off in the direction of the hole in the wall, with his escorts behind.

I turned to Jason before saying, "You really like to make him mad don't you?"

"Its one of the few things that I like doing," Jason said with a smile and took off to follow Arthur.

_Sometimes I worry about you Jason, _I thought to myself before following close behind.

**Line Break**

It was about sunset and I had just finished healing the last injured Pokémon on the fort with my Healing Pulse. When Jason and I first arrived on the scene, Arthur assigned us with jobs to help the wounded get back into shape. Jason had to go and rescue a few Pokémon who were trapped inside the fort when the roof collapsed, while I had to tend every injury. The types of injuries I'd seen so far were pretty intense. I had to heal Pokémon with burns, bruises, broken ribs, and sometimes the occasional bullet wound. The sight when we got here was pretty hard to take in; there were Pokémon struggling to hang on to the last bit of life they had left, some were trying to help their fallen friends, some were even sitting against some rubble traumatized at the sight around them. I was glad when I came around to help these poor Pokémon; they really needed all the help they could get.

I hadn't seen Jason in a while, which troubled me a bit, so I decided to go look for him. I checked the horizon of the sea to see that the ships in the distance still hadn't moved since the encounter with the bird. I was beginning to wonder what they might have been planning at the moment. After a bit of exploring around the edges of the fort I finally found Jason pulling an Umbreon out of a huge crack in the concrete floor. The Umbreon thanked him before walking off to who knows where.

"Was he alright?" I asked as I walked up to Jason.

Jason immediately turned his attention towards me at the sound of my voice. "Oh, just a few scratches, nothing big," he assured.

I couldn't help but notice that Jason was looking at me in a caring way. It looked like he was staring at my eyes for some odd reason. That was then until I started to feel a new emotion beginning to bloom inside Jason, though I couldn't really put my finger on what that emotion was. It felt…familiar somehow, like a forgotten memory beginning to be unearthed. However, Jason's trance-like state was soon broken when we heard Arthur's voice coming from behind me.

"There you two are," Arthur spoke from behind me.

A frown was on Jason's face as soon as he caught the first sight of the charizard. Arthur was probably checking if we were done with our jobs. "What do you want?" Jason said in an irritated tone.

Arthur sighed before answering. "Jason, this hostility towards me has to stop and I intend to sort out this problem right now. You've despised me since the day you were born and quite frankly it's hurting me."

"Oh really? That's a surprise," Jason sarcastically said aloud.

Arthur then sat down on a medium sized piece of rubble before speaking again. "Jason, I just want your honest opinion. What is it exactly that you hate about me?"

"What, do you want me to make a list for you so I could rub it in your face?" Jason said with more than a hint of hostility.

"Jason!" I shouted not believing what I had just heard.

"If you must," Arthur said calmly to Jason.

"Alright then, let's start the list shall we? But that will take too long, so let me sum it all up. You're a strict asshole."

"Jason! There's no need for language!" I said disapprovingly as a mother would.

"How am I strict?" Arthur asked Jason.

I was beginning to feel invisible at this point. They were just ignoring me like if I wasn't even there!

"The word _strict _never really entered your thick head did it?" Jason snapped.

At this point Arthur stood up from his seat on the rubble. "Jason… I just want to get this feud you have with me out of the way for good. So I want you to name the reasons why you think I'm strict."

"You want to find out why I think you're strict? Fine! I'll tell you!" Jason said with clamped fists. "It's because of that stupid promise you made with my dad! Ever since you promised that you would keep me safe while he was away, you took away my freedom from everything! You would never let me do anything I wanted; you ruined my life because of that!" Jason then sat down on a rock after he released his thoughts to Arthur.

I never know this about Arthur; well I didn't really know anything about Arthur. Knowing that he made a promise to Jasons dad about his sons safety was in fact pretty interesting to me. I just stood there, not knowing what to do now. I wanted to say something that would douse Jason's anger towards Arthur, but it didn't feel like the right time for me to intervene. This is the kind of problem that they'd have to sort out themselves.

Arthur sighed before taking a seat next to Jason, which caused Jason grunted in response.

"Jason…does your father care about you?" Arthur asked calmly.

"Yeah, I'm the only thing he cares about every time he comes home," Jason said with less anger showing.

"Well, imagine if you disappeared. Would your father be crushed?"

"I, I guess he would."

"Then so would I. You see, your father had no one to depend on to look after you. I cared about you the same way he cared for you, so when he saw that in me he knew he could trust me."

Jason opened his mouth to say something but no words ever came out; he was at a loss for words. It was as if Jason was beginning to understand Arthurs reasoning.

"Now, when he gave me his responsibility for you, I always feared that I would let him down. Your father was my best friend and I didn't want to disappoint him."

Jason then looked down on the floor as if he was in a trance.

"I always wanted to have the same relationship you had with your father. That was something I envied him about, a father and son relationship. But I knew that was something that would never happen between us after you…you know, started to hate me." Arthur said as he sullenly looked to the ground.

Jason then looked up to Arthur with a look of astonishment.

"You know, I guess a son was what I really wanted. But I think my fear for your safety got in the way of that. Jason… I'm asking you, do you forgive me?"

Jason thought over what Arthur had said so far, I kept hearing thoughts of belief and disbelief going back and forth in Jason's mind. Right then Jason was at war with himself, a war between the hate and the new sympathy that was beginning to develop for Arthur. In the end, Jason finally came up with his answer for Arthur. His next few words would shock me.

"Arthur… I, I don't really know what to say. I don't know whether to hate you or…"Jason paused for a second, and took a deep breath for what he was about to say next. "Arthur, I think all I ever wanted was a good reason for the treatment you gave me, and for that I forgive you."

Arthur then looked up to Jason with a look of surprise at first, but then a smile slowly replaced it. "Thank you Jason, it means a lot to me," Arthur said with new hope beginning to rise from within.

You know, I think it's the first time I've seen a smile on Arthur, though it's pretty strange when I think about it. He always had the intimidating official look, but today he looked like a normal Pokémon with a normal lifestyle.

"I was wondering if, maybe, we could start all over again. Be on friendly terms like we should have," Arthur said.

Jason chuckled before saying, "Yeah of course we can. But I want you to trust me from now on, no more holding me back, and no more rules, got it?"

"O-of course," Arthur gave in.

I felt new hope and relief flowing from the two sitting there. Jason seemed glad that he and Arthur had established new trust between each other, the same went for Arthur as well. The moment was just so touching to me, that I began to feel tears swelling up in my eyes. Jason seemed to notice my reaction and chuckled.

"Why are you crying?" he asked.

"Huh, oh it's nothing, i-its just allergies," I lied.

Jason just smirked, he probably knew that I was lying, but he left it alone. A silence then filled the air, and no one wanted to break it, for this moment seemed like an achievement to the two. Soon enough though, Arthur spoke out, thus breaking the silence.

"Jason, I want you to have something. Something I should have given you a long time ago to remember a certain someone by," Arthur said as he reached into the pockets of his vest. Arthur pulled out something that looked like a small wooden cross attached to a black loop of string. "Your father never really did accept Arceus as his religion, he believed in God so he kept this with him. He gave me it as a reminder of the promise I made to him a long time ago. I thought that you should be the rightful owner of that item," Arthur said as he placed it around Jason's neck.

"But, he gave it to you didn't he?" Jason asked, unsure about accepting the cross. "I-I can't have this, this is yours not mine. Besides I don't even worship his religion."

Arthur then put his hand over Jason's shoulder. "Jason, if it's alright with me, then it's alright with your father," he said.

Jason was still unsure about Arthur's decision, but he let it pass as he looked down at the wooden cross, which was over his red bandana. _Oh Arceus, I think I'm about to cry. _However, the moment was lost as soon as a Garchomp that looked like he saw a ghost came running towards us.

"Arthur," the garchomp said with a quick salute even as he was trying to catch his breath.

"What's wrong soldier?" Arthur asked.

"Its king Vladislav sir, he's contacting us through the radio," the Garchomp informed. "He's demanding for your presence right now."

Arthur took one more look at Jason and got up from his seat next to him. "He's probably going to demand our surrender. I'll be back you two, just sit back for now," he said.

"Hang on, I want to hear what that fat walrus has to say," Jason said as he got off from his seat.

"No Jason, I just want you to…" Arthur paused for a second while Jason gave him a threatening glare. I think Arthur nearly forgot about the promise he made to Jason right now. "Uh, you can come if you want," Arthur said before he motioned for us to follow him.

Jason smirked after Arthur changed his mind. "I think I'm going to like this new Arthur," Jason commented to me.

"I never really knew Arthur, but oh well," I shrugged as we took off to catch up with Arthur.

**Line Break**

Arthur left us wondering lost throughout the hallways of the fort, I guess he really wanted to hear Vladislavs speech. The fort was like a labyrinth, countless hallways and rooms stood in our way. It wasn't long before Jason and I asked for directions from passing Pokémon that proved to be very helpful. In no time at all we found our way into a large concrete room that was known as the communications room. There were small Pokémon all sitting in wooden chairs with headsets around their heads, messing with various controls on the radios in front of them while communicating with their companions simultaneously. It was chaotic.

Standing on the far right side of the room was Arthur standing next to a Quilava; both were listening intently to the headsets around their heads. Jason turned to me with a questioning look, like he was asking what was going on. We walked towards Arthur and the Quilava just in time for Arthur to finish up the conversation he was having with whoever was on the other line.

"I see then… We'll think about it… How long do we have then? Alright," Arthur said calmly as he took the headset off his head. Arthur sighed in disappointment as he set the headset down on the table of which the radio was sitting on. Finally, he noticed us standing patiently behind him. "Oh, there you are, I thought I lost you two back there. Honestly, I was going to go back and look for you two after I was done with Vladislav," Arthur said.

"Looks like your done talking with him. How'd it go?" Jason asked.

Arthur looked down in disappointment, as if he was ashamed of something he did.

"Jason…Vladislav knows you're here,"

Jason raised an eyebrow. "Okay, I'm not really surprised or anything. But I am curious as to how he did find out."

Arthur took a deep breath to muster up his courage for what he was about to say. "That bird you were fighting on the beach earlier said that it was defeated by a Grovyle."

"But how could he know if it was Jason though? It could have been any Grovyle," I inquired.

"True. But how many Grovyles do you see everyday? There aren't many of those running around Naru," Arthur pointed out.

"Okay Arthur, Vladislav knows I'm here, but cut to the bad news already. It sounds like there's something that has to do with me," Jason said.

Arthur continued from where he left off. "Vladislav says that he has another fleet coming to aid him. In the condition of this place and the Pokemon protecting it, we won't stand a chance against a larger attack. The last one was already too much for us." Arthur paused before continuing. "But, he's giving us a chance to avoid this conflict by letting us evacuate the fort, plus he promises to withdraw his fleet for the time being until we can regain our strength, under one condition though."

"I have a feeling this is not going to be good," I said.

"I'm guessing I come in this part right?" Jason inquired.

Arthur grimly nodded and finally answered Jason's question after long hesitation, and what he said next would leave both Jason and me in shock. "Jason…Vladislav wants you to turn yourself in to them."

**A/N: Cliffhanger! How do you readers think will Jason react to this? Will he turn himself in to the Northerners? Anyways this is the most I've ever wrote in two weeks! This would have been way longer if I added a few extra scenes that had to be done in Jason's P.O.V., but I really wanted Elana to have the spotlight for a while. I would like to thank my beta reader "Xamem-The Heart of Oblivion" for editing this, otherwise there would have been a lot of mistakes here. Remember, leave a review **


	9. Baptism by cold

**A/N: I've encountered some writers block at certain points of this chapter. But when I got my cup of iced tea I was ready to go!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, Gamefreak does.**

Chapter 8: Baptism by the cold

**Jason's P.O.V.**

"He wants me to turn myself in?" I repeated, not believing what Arthur had told me.

Arthur nodded. "Yes, that is his only demand. However, we will not give in. You're much too important for Narus future."

Vladislav must be stupid if he thinks I'm going to give up easily. He clearly doesn't know how stubborn I am when it comes to giving up. Once I set my sights on something, I don't stop until I achieve it. Right now, my goal is to protect my region from the invaders.

"So… what are we going to do?" Elana asked.

Arthur put up a thoughtful look before saying, "Vladislav gave us an hour to make the decision; that's when his armada of ships comes. Here's what we're going to do, we're going get as much as many lives as we can out of here. There won't be enough time to get every single Pokémon out of here, but we'll save some lives."

"Wait a minute. You're saying not everyone is going to get out of here?" I asked aloud, unable to believe what he was saying.

As soon as that outburst came out of my mouth, every Pokemon in the room became quiet and turned their heads towards us. Perhaps I shouldn't have said that, I'd only fill everyones minds with doubt and fear. The attention I was getting at the moment made me feel somewhat awkward and guilty at the same time. I didn't want everyone to know the truth of their fate, for I'm sure some of these Pokémon are already afraid to die. Slowly, the small Pokémon in the room resumed to what they were doing moments before my outburst, as if nothing happened at all.

"Anyways," Arthur said irritably, trying his best not to show it. "I'm sending you and Elana back to the palace before anything bad happens to you two."

"I believe the _bad already_ happened," Elana flatly pointed out.

Arthur ignored Elana's comment and continued. "As for me, I'll stay here to monitor everyone who won't make it to the trucks."

"What?" I said in disbelief. "I thought you weren't going to hold me back anymore! If you're staying here then so am I!"

"Jason, please don't make this more difficult than it already is. Your safety is my top concern right now. Please, at least let me try and save you," Arthur pleaded.

This is unbelievable! Arthur promised that he would change a bit, but it looks like he doesn't want to change just yet. However, I knew that Arthur wouldn't change the way he puts his life in front of others. This is the way he always was, an idiot who puts his life in front of others. There are stories of him that talked about the lives he saved on, and off the battlefield. Some even said he'd get in the way of attacks that were meant for others. His actions were what earned him the place as a general for Naru.

"Maybe its best if we-" Elana said until I abruptly interrupted her.

"I'm pretty sure you know I'm not going anywhere no matter what!" I said to Arthur.

"Jason, I, gahh!" Arthur cried out in frustration. He rubbed his forehead before saying, "I guess there's no way to convince you to go back now, is there?"

"No," I stated.

Arthur let out an irritable sigh before saying, "Okay, okay fine! But its-"

Unfortunately, Arthur was cut off when the quilava sitting next to him spoke out. "Sir we've got another incoming transmission," he said whilst messing with various knobs on the radio in front of him.

Arthur then turned around in response so that he was facing the quilava. "The Northerners?" he asked with worry.

The quilava nodded and handed Arthur a headset that he put on. After a few more seconds of messing with the radio, the quilava gave Arthur a thumbs up, indicating that he was good to go.

"This is General Arthur, who's this?" Arthur said through the small microphone part of the headset. Arthur silently stood there listening to whoever was on the other line, at first it seemed like if he was just talking to himself, then a look of surprise covered his face. "I'm sorry, but his decision is no… If you insist then." Arthur then took off the headset around his head and held it towards me. "Vladislav wants to speak with you," he said.

Well I was sure surprised; the walrein actually wanted to talk to me. I turned to Elana to see that she had the same surprised look on her face, though she didn't say anything. I turned back to Arthur and accepted the headset, eagerly waiting to give the walrein a piece of my mind.

"Just remember Jason, don't say anything stupid. What you say will affect the course of the war. Understand?" Arthur sternly said to me.

"Yeah, yeah, I get you," I absentmindedly replied, ignoring what Arthur said.

A new voice then spoke to me on the other line of the radio in a slight Russian accent. "Is this the prince of Naru?" it asked calmly. The moment I heard the voice, I knew this was the very Pokémon that had caused the pain we had to endure… the pain I had to endure. I was beginning to seethe in anger, knowing that this was the Pokémon that gave the order to kill my mother. Oh, how I longed to get my hands around his throat.

"Yeah, this is the prince of Naru," I said mockingly. "Listen you fat walrus, I hope you're listening because I want you to know that you're a no good son of a-" I ranted until I heard a click on the other end of the line. "Oh, hello?" I called.

Feeling that I had just screwed something up, I turned to see that Arthur was staring at me with his mouth wide open unable to speak at the moment, while Elanas reaction was a face palm.

The quilava decided to break the awkward silence by speaking out. "Um, we've got another incoming transmission from the same source," he said, sounding like if he was unsure what to say at moment as well.

"Oh, good," I said, relieved to see that I still have another chance at negotiating.

As soon as I heard a click through my headset, the same voice spoke again, more sternly this time. "I don't believe that's how royalty speaks to one another. Now if you would be patient and listen to what I have to say, I'm sure we'll have everything cleared up in a matter of seconds, yes?" Vladislav said.

I replied, trying my best as not to let an insult escape my careless muzzle. "Yeah, um, about that, I was sort of in a bad mood at the moment and…Forget it, you're nothing but a little-" I started to rant until I was cut off by the same clicking noise. I silently cursed to myself and slowly turned to Arthur and Elana, who had faces that were asking, _well how'd it go_? "Oops, he uh, hanged up again," I said, the statement timid.

"What?" they both shouted disbelievingly and in unison.

A few seconds later the quilava sighed and said, "Uh, another incoming transmission, the source is still the same."

When the clicking noise signaled the return of Vladislav's voice, the sudden urge to yell out insults at him also returned. _I don't want to mess this one up so I might as well keep my mouth shut._

At first there was a silence making me wonder if Vladislav was even there, until he finally spoke out. "… Are you finished making yourself sound like an ignorant child yet?" he impatiently asked.

I took one deep breath to calm myself down. "Yeah. I'm done."

"Good," Vladislav said with his voice returning back to a calm patient tone. "Now, let us discuss terms, da? I'm sure your time is important as my time." There was a small pause before Vladislav continued. "Are you aware of the terms, prince? The deal to trade one life for… the lives of several thousands at stake here."

When Vladislav spoke of the lives at stake here, I finally realized the course of what would happen if I were to disagree. Not only would I put myself at risk here but others around me as well.

"Yes, I know your terms," I said in a low mumble.

"I am waiting for your answer, prince, and I want it now. Otherwise, we would forget this conversation ever happened and we will resume what we were doing a moment ago." He paused before continuing. "One life is all I'm asking for. The fighting will cease, and no more lives will be lost in this pointless battle. However, the fighting only stops on your call. You are very well aware of that, I'm sure of it."

Thoughts were running back and forth in my mind, thoughts of the possible outcomes of my decision. I was considering not accepting the terms and just continue fighting, never to give up. But I knew that was what I wanted, I was the one who wanted to stay and fight, but what about the others? I'm sure they're looking forward to getting out of here alive, and I don't want my selfish act to get in the way of that. _Maybe I should think about my other option_, I thought. But I shook that thought off almost immediately as it appeared in my mind, for it would be unlike me to back down from a fight.

"Have you made up your mind yet?" Vladislav asked, sounding like if he was losing his patience by now.

I tried to speak but no words came out, for I still hadn't decided yet.

Vladislav sighed over the radio before asking, "Tell me, are there others with you?"

"Uh, yes, why?" I wondered.

"Take a look at them. Are they ones who are close to you?" he asked.

I knew the answer to that question already, the only ones I actually know in this room are Elana and Arthur, the rest were just strangers to me. "Yeah, there's some," I answered.

"Think about them for a moment; think about what they have to live for, think of what they can accomplish if they were to live longer. If they were to die in the upcoming battle, it would be most unfortunate for them. Just think, their deaths will only come sooner because of you. It would happen right in front of you, their lifeless bodies just laying there. You would grieve for them, and you would never forgive yourself if you hadn't made the right choice," Vladislav said.

What he said to me sounded true, it seemed _so_ logical. I couldn't handle it when my mother died right in front of me, so how can I possibly handle it if my friends were to die in front of me. If the battle today were to be lost then the Northerners would reach deeper into Naru, harming thousands of innocents. What would happen if they were to reach Drake, Leo, and Pax in New Jamestown? What would they do to Arthur? Worse… what would they do to Elana? That thought struck me harder than all my previous thoughts. I don't want Elana to be harmed in any way and certainly not be harmed because of me. If that were to happen, how could I live with myself? A world without Elana sounded depressing already.

Finally, all my thoughts ceased as I made my final decision, however I badly I'd regret it. In one deep breath I quietly said, "I accept."

"What?" Elana and Arthur shouted in unison.

Vladislav chuckled before saying, "You've made a wise choice young prince, and you are making the right decision. Did I not tell you that this will be cleared up in a matter of seconds?"

The sudden urge to rant out insults began to rise inside of me, so much that I felt like I couldn't contain it anymore. If I were in the same room with the walrein right now, he would have been gasping for air within seconds.

"I will be sending Emilia to bring you in. You two have met before, remember? The mechanical eagle you encountered?"

That thing had a _name_? I found that highly unlikely for a machine to have a name such as Emilia, but they have to call it something right? "U-uh, okay I'll keep an eye out for her, or it, or whatever that thing is," I said.

When the clicking noise signaled the end of the conversation, I took my headset off and laid it next to the radio. As I turned around, I saw a worried face on Elana while Arthur had an angry look on his.

"Please tell me you didn't accept the terms," Arthur said.

"I uh, I said yes," I said shyly.

"Jason, what were you _thinking_!" Arthur shouted in outrage. "You can't just turn yourself in like that! Naru needs a ruler, someone to look after the region and its citizens. Without a ruler, how can everyone possibly know what to do? They'll panic and go crazy! Or worse, if the Northerners were to attack some time soon, the soldiers would have no morale at all if there's no one to fight for!"

"Hold on a second," Elana thoughtfully said while turning to the charizard. "I thought you were the one who thought Jason wasn't ready to become king."

"I, I mean, well, I-I'm talking about the future!" Arthur stuttered.

Elana shook her head before turning her attention to me. "Why did you do it Jason? There has to be a reason why you accepted," she asked.

"It's because-" I started, but I shut my mouth instantly. I didn't want her to know that part of the reason why I said yes was because I cared for her safety; although kind, I didn't want to embarrassed myself in front of her. "Because, I just don't want anyone to get hurt because of me," I said, telling part of the truth.

Elana was about to say something else, until the quilava spoke out first. "Um, Arthur, we've got a report that a giant bird is heading towards the fort fast."

"Species?" Arthur asked.

"We don't know sir, it doesn't match anything we've ever seen," the quilava answered.

The metal bird? Here already? Well I have to say, that thing sure is fast. It seemed my time on this rock had run out already. I felt a little heartbroken to know that I possibly wouldn't see anyone ever again, not even my friends. But what hurt me most was that I wouldn't see Elanas beautiful eyes ever again.

I still don't understand that feeling I get whenever I look at Elana. Come to think of it, that feeling has been growing stronger after every look I take at her. It's hard to say what this emotion is, and quite frankly its bugging the hell out of me.

I sighed before saying, "That would be my ride."

"Your ride?" Arthur asked.

"Yeah, Vladislav said that he was sending that thing to pick me up. Sorry it has to end this way," I quietly said.

Arthur said nothing more; he just looked towards the floor in defeat, while Elana showed a heartbreaking face of sorrow.

* * *

><p>Flying isn't exactly an experience I'd ever wanted, but I got it anyways… right in the talons of a demonic bird that possibly wanted to eat me alive! But luckily for me, <em>Emilia<em> was under orders to bring me to Vladislav alive.

"I can't wait to skin you like a game animal when my master is through with you!" the metal bird cried out.

I was hanging on to the legs of the metal bird for my dear life as we flew past the ocean at such an incredible speed, that the water was nothing but a blue shiny blur. I wanted this experience to end so badly that I actually wanted to see Vladislav as fast as possible. I then noticed that Emilia started to slow down considerably, so I looked ahead of us to see that we were nearing the Northern warships. I was quite uneasy knowing that I was about to board a ship filled with Pokémon that possibly hate my guts. I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but since Northerners hates Naruians down to the bone, I'd be pretty much dead as soon as I set foot on the ship.

Emilia then hovered over a dark grayish warship that was noticeably larger than its surrounding ships. On the deck of the ship, I could see large water and ice type Pokemon scurrying across, carrying small crates and tools back and forth. I also noticed that the front of the ship bared untellable letters in white paint. Even though the letters looked completely alien to me, it was obvious that it said _The Iron Fist _in Russian, for this was the infamous ship that Vladislav uses for his voyages.

In a sudden move, Emilia released its grip on me causing me to fall onto the hard metal deck of the ship. Pain surged through my body as I landed on the deck, trying my best to resist crying out. I then noticed that two magnemites were hovering towards me, staying by each others sides while small sparks were shooting off their bodies. Emilia then gave out one last screech as it flew away from the ship, startling the crew as it did.

"I'll be hunting you later, weed!" it cried out as it disappeared behind a nearby ship.

I quickly turned my attention back to the two magnemites only to be paralyzed by their shockwave attack, causing me to become immobile as I withered in pain. As soon as the pain subsided, one magnemite shouted a command at me that sounded like complete gibberish (though I think it was Russian it was speaking in); I was left wondering what it had said. While I was staring at them with a dumbstruck look, they lost their patience and struck me with another shockwave attack. Again, the electrified pain surged through every limb of my body before subsiding. When the magnimites shouted the same command again, I slowly got up to avoid the risk of getting shocked by them again in their frustration. They then shoved me towards an open doorway on the side of a tall metal structure that was placed on the center of the ship.

As the magnimites rudely shoved me towards the doorway, I noticed that none of the crewmembers took any interest in me; they were minding their own business working on the ship. But when I took a closer look at them, I noticed that they had the obvious sign of fear across their face. It was as if they were intimidated by something, thinking that doing their jobs was the only thing keeping them alive. I however didn't get enough time to study them further as I finally entered the metal structure. What stood in front of me was a dark small hallway lit only by dim red lights that seemed to expand into a large network of other hallways. As quickly as I had entered the eerie hallway, the magnimites shoved me further into it, guiding me through the labyrinth like network of hallways.

The hallways of the interior of the building felt very cramped, even for someone of my size to be in. It makes me wonder how the walrein even managed to make his way though here. Running along the hallways were various wires and pipes, with the occasional red valve that jutted out with an unreadable label in white paint. All the turns we made would make even the hardiest dizzy.

After we traveled through several hallways, we came across a staircase that led deeper down into the hull of the ship. I nearly tripped down the stairs when a magnimite shoved me towards it; I was too busy looking down. I was just about ready to lash out at these annoying magnimites, but due to my paralysis, my movements were greatly restricted. After we made it to the floor below the stairs, the magnimites led me through another network of hallways. This pattern went on for what seemed like hours, climb down a couple of stairs and then get shoved through the hallways. Repeat. Finally, when I thought we couldn't possibly get any deeper into the hull, we came across a closed metal doorway.

One of the magnimites then went up to the closed door and shouted out something in its language. In response, the door was slowly opened by a noticeably timid froslass who nodded and stood aside for us to enter the room. The room we entered still had the dim red light that illuminated the countless hallways, but the light in here was much brighter than it was outside of the room.

The room resembled the concrete office Elana and I were locked from inside the fort, it was the same size and the desk and chairs were in their same places, the only difference was that the room had a metal interior.

Out of everything I noticed in the room, I had my attention fixed on a certain walrein sitting behind the wooden desk in the room. He sat there with a professional calm look, studying every movement I made; he even looked like he was expecting me to come out of that doorway that exact moment. I also noticed the slight smell of alcohol that lingered the room. Vladislav looked exactly like how I imagined him to be… fat and disgusting.

"Prince Jason, I've been waiting for your arrival," Vladislav said in his Russian accent. He then turned his attention to the two magnimites that were floating by my sides. He said several confusing words in Russian to the two, making them nod in response and hovered their way out of the room, which the froslass slowly closed after they left.

_I'm getting really frustrated by the fact that I can't understand a single word these Northerners speak. _I couldn't even tell if they were talking about me or something else that didn't even matter, heck they could be insulting me in their language for all I knew! I know a variety of languages, but sadly, Russian is not in my list.

"Okay, you brought me on your ship, you made me go through shock therapy, and you make me go through your maze down here. Is there some point to all this?" I asked with a hint of hostility.

Vladislav smirked before answering. "Yes, there is a point, little prince. So that you will have no chance in escaping," he stated. "With the paralysis you are in and the little knowledge you have in navigating your way out of this ship, I doubt that you'll get very far before my guards pick you off. But if you do manage somehow to find your way out, you'll have no transportation to escape with. Why did you think I chose Emilia to drop you off here, hmm?" he said with a smug look.

I realized what he said was true; there was no hope in escaping now. However, there was one thing that was bothering me right now, something that just didn't make sense. "Why do you want to make sure I don't escape? I thought you were going to get rid of me as soon as I got here. Heck, you could kill me right now if you wanted to," I asked out of curiosity.

Vladislav leaned back into his chair before answering. "Because, where's the fun in killing you now?" he answered as if it was the obvious. He paused before continuing. "I run things differently in my region; _I _determine the fate of those who dare stand against me. Common figures like the peasant, the soldiers and such, gets the bullet through the head. However, for the fate of political figures, such as yourself, deserves to die the worst death possible, very slowly. So slow, that they have time to rethink about standing against me," he finished.

A chill went up my spine as I thought about what the walrein has planed for me. _Come on Jason, get yourself out of here before you get into real trouble_, I thought to myself. But if I attempted any form of escape the Northerners were sure to resume their attack in an instant. I pondered over that thought for a moment, and wondered if Vladislav was really going to keep his word.

"Hold on a second, before we start talking about that, I want a guarantee that you will back off from Naru," I said.

Vladislav grinned before asking, "A guarantee you say?"

I nodded once to confirm the question.

"Very well, I'm sure I could convince you with a little story." Vladislav paused before continuing. "Let's start from the beginning… I lied," he stated.

His simple answer left me confused. "Lied? Lied about what?" I asked curiously.

"I lied about the other fleet coming to aid me. I was just bluffing, hoping you stupid Naruians would fall for it… and of course you did," he said with a smug look.

"But, that just doesn't make any sense!" I said. "I mean, you had a huge fleet to start out with and with it you nearly destroyed the fort! Then, out of nowhere, you pulled back with all that firepower. You could have won the day, but why didn't you?"

Vladislav smirked before saying, "There's an explanation for everything that happened today, prince." He paused before continuing. "Have you heard of the infamous name, the warlords of the pacific? That is the name the nearby regions call Naru because of its reputation as a war region. Today, Narus soldiers protected their reputation through the fierce fight they've put up." He paused once more before continuing. "Through the fight, they've severely weakened the army that I have been building for years… I underestimated your army. I am left with barely enough soldiers to continue the fight."

Vladislav then turned to the froslass who was sill standing by the door. "Akulina, be a kind girl and call Alexey for me please. Tell him I have a job that needs taken care of," he said.

"U-Uh, y-yes my king," she timidly said before she quickly exited the room, leaving the walrein and I alone.

I wondered who this Alexey might be and what job did Vladislav need taken care of. However, I had a feeling that I wasn't going to like this_ job _he had in mind by the time Alexey arrived here.

Vladislav then turned his attention towards me before continuing. "Now to the point…With the weak army I currently have, I cannot resume my attack. But when I saw the damage I inflicted to your army's spirit, I decided to use the opportunity to drive the dagger of fear deeper into their hearts, by coming up with the lie that they would dread to hear. The result is your surrender, and more time for me to prepare."

I looked down in humiliation. _How could I have fallen for his trick?_ I asked myself. _In the beginning, I could have said no, saving myself from the trouble_. However, I knew it was already too late, the decision was already made. _Now I'm stuck here_.

"Now the most valuable piece of the game is in my possession. You," he continued.

"When you are finally out of my way, Naru will have no choice but to give up. And once the entire Pacific hears about my victory over Naru, they too will bow down before me… I will accomplish what my father intended to do years ago… domination of the Pacific Ocean. Moreover, once that is done, I will unify the regions into one nation! All of it under the supervision of me." By the time Vladislav finished his speech, the froslass named Akulina came through the doorway, along with a glalie wearing a blue army general cap. "And the best part, you won't live long enough to see it all happen," Vladislav said as he motioned the glalie to come closer.

"Yes my king?" the glalie asked humbly, taking a quick glance at me.

"Alexey, I would like you to show Prince Jason here prison Five after we get back home," Vladislav said.

"With pleasure," the glalie known as Alexey said with a mischievous grin.

I tensed up after hearing those words, growing cautious of what Alexey might do. I tried to ready my leaf blades, but the paralysis I was in made it difficult for me to concentrate.

"Akulina, if you would please," Vladislav said as he gestured her.

Shyly, the froslass slowly made her way towards me whilst avoiding eye contact with me. Akulina looked harmless to me; she seemed like the type that wouldn't hurt a fly. I could see that she was nervously rubbing her left arm. It almost looked like if she was scared of either me or Vladislav, but then there was the possibility that she afraid everyone.

"S-Stand up please," she timidly said.

I complied, seeing that there was no harm in doing so. She's probably going to show me the way through the maze of hallways to who knows where.

Before she did anything else, she leaned forth and whispered into my ear. "Please…forgive me."

What she said left me confused, but I had no time to ask any questions before Akulinas sudden move. She then used a powerful ice beam at me, catching me completely off guard.

The last thing I remembered was the severe coldness that made my entire body go numb as it froze me down to the bone, encasing me in a shard of ice as my vision and mind turned black.

**A/N: It appears Jason has gotten himself into trouble yet again! What do you think will happen next? I'm really looking forward to telling you all the next chapter, because that's when we get to meet a few more characters and get to know the antagonist of the story a little more better. I would like to thank Xamem-The Heart of Oblivion for making it possible for this chapter to make its neatest appearance. Also, please leave a review!**


	10. Redemption

**A/N: I've got to admit, I was kind of lazy when I was attempting to write this chapter. Also I had to write some of this on a REALLY slow laptop! Then I had writers block, testing, but most of it was actually laziness. I'd let you guys punch me in the face for bringing this chapter up so late, really I'd let you. But I seem to have this problem when I write Elana's P.O.V.'s.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, Gamefreak does.**

Chapter 9: Redemption

**Elana's P.O.V.**

Fatigue… was what we all felt when we finally returned to the palace. Loads upon loads of Pokemon were exiting the trucks they had arrived in that served as an escape from the events that took place at the fort by the beach. Some of these Pokémon were either on stretchers or leaning against each other for support. Then, there was the occasional Pokémon that was mindlessly wandering around the courtyard in grief for their losses. One of those Pokémon suffering from grief… is me.

I silently looked towards the floor as I walked around the courtyard with my arms crossed, feeling sorrow for the sudden disappearance of Jason. But I wasn't feeling sorrow just for Jason, I was feeling sorrow from all of the negative emotions that were emanating from those around me. There were just so many emotions around me that I thought that I might be drowning in them by now. I couldn't take it; the emotions were just driving me nuts! Oh, I wish I knew how to block out those thoughts all at once.

I couldn't help but shed a tear for these poor Pokémon, they must have gone through such hard times. I rubbed my teary eyes and decided to go inside the palace instead of hanging around outside. _Maybe it will more peaceful in there_, I thought, with hope of escaping the depressing atmosphere.

When I entered the enormous palace, the first thing I saw was the charizard named Arthur, pacing back and forth in the foyer. The emotions I felt emanating from him was a mix of annoyance and worry, though I felt that worry clouded his mind more. He must be a little peeved from the decision Jason made, while at the same time he's worrying greatly for his safety, that's something I'm guessing from the observations I made from him. When he finally realized I was standing in the entrance to the palace, he sighed and walked up to me. _I wonder what he's going to say to me_, I wondered.

When Arthur finally approached me, he looked up, his face all official looking, before speaking. "I'm greatly sorry about the events you had to go through with us. Especially about…" he apologized until he trailed off into melancholy.

"Y-Yeah, it's alright. I'm sure a shower and a good night's sleep will fix everything," I said with a weak smile, trying to show my appreciation for his concern about me. That was then until my stomach made a small grumble. I blushed as I said, "And a proper dinner as well."

Arthur chuckled in response. "Well luckily for you it's just about dinner time here. Go ahead and find yourself something to eat in the dining room," he said as he gestured me towards a wooden door at the end of the long foyer.

"Really?" I asked in disbelief, wondering if he was playing a joke on me or something.

"Yes, really. It's the least we can do for you after all you've been through," he answered.

I nearly squealed out of excitement over his answer. I have never dined in a palace before, but now that I've been given a chance to, I'll get a chance to explore the place a bit.

As I was about to set off to find the dining room, Arthur spoke out again, only this time he was more serious. "But Elana, I want you to promise something. I mean that I want you to _swear_ something to me," he said.

I was baffled by this, but I shook it off as I replied. "Um, okay. What is it?" I asked.

Arthur paused before sternly saying, "I want you to swear, that you will _never _speak of what happened today to anyone, and don't even speak about what you witnessed last night."

"Okay, why?" I asked curiously.

Arthur looked around to see if there were others present to hear what he was about to say, it made me tense up as he did so. "Because, I don't want anyone to find out that the queen and prince had suddenly gone missing. Do you know what kind of panic the Pokémon of Naru will go through? There will be an uproar." Arthur paused before continuing. "Tell me, is it everyday that you find out that your ruler died all of a sudden?" he asked.

"Um, no?" I answered, unsure of what he was trying to point out.

"It would shock you, wouldn't it?"

"I guess it would," I answered once more. "I mean, I don't really know your queen, I just moved here about a week ago. But I'm sure it would be a shocker."

"Then we don't want that kind of reaction. Now, are you going to tell anyone?" Arthur asked.

"Um, yeah, I won't say a single word to anyone," I said with an assuring smile.

Arthur raised an eyebrow. "Promise?" he asked with a stern voice.

I could see why Jason hated Arthur from the start, he _is_ annoying. I didn't see it at first but I was starting to see Arthur's personality more clearly. I groaned in annoyance before I quickly switched to a smile and traced an x over where my heart should be. "Cross my heart and hope to die," I said with a more cheerful attitude.

"Okay, good. Off you go," he said as he made his leave.

I however, desperately wanted to know something, something that's been bugging me ever since Jason left. "Wait!" I called out to Arthur.

Arthur stopped as soon as I called out to him. "Yes?" he asked.

I hesitated with my question at first; afraid that I would hear an answer I would dread to hear. "We... we're going to find a way to get Jason back, right?" I asked.

Arthur sighed as he looked towards the floor, which was already a bad sign to me. "I don't know but… knowing Vladislav, he would've gotten rid of him by now… I'm sorry, I don't think there is anything we can do. All we can do now is protect ourselves."

Hearing what Arthur said made my heart sink tremendously. Jason was a good friend, a really good one; in fact he was the first friend I actually made since I moved here. I really loved it when I made him mad over simple things, but I guess annoying him was just a thing that amused me over time, it sure made a smile on my face when I did so. I also felt sorry for him after heard about his tragic past; even though he was a prince, he sure was an unlucky one. From his reactions to others around him, it seemed as if _I_ was the only one he actually understood well. Come to think of it, Jason seemed to… treat me differently than those around him. I was the only person he was actually kind to… most of the time.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when Arthur placed a hand over my shoulder.

"Don't be sad Elana, I'm sure Jason wouldn't want that," he said. "Leaving the past is something we learn to do over time. You may have not experienced anything like this so I'm sure this is hard for you. But, you have to stay strong."

_Funny, the truth is, I have experienced something like this before_, I thought to myself. Then another thought occurred to me as I looked back into last night. "Hey Arthur, you know that Gardevoirs can sense emotions right?"

"Yes, why?" he answered.

I hesitated, afraid that I may pull an emotional string, but I mustered up my courage and asked anyways. "Well, last night when… you know who died… out of all the emotions I sensed in that room, yours was the strongest. I'm kind of curious to why you were that sad. I mean, it seemed like if you were close to the queen."

Already I could feel depressing emotions flowing within him, similar to the ones he felt when Elizabeth passed away last night. I was beginning to regret asking such a question that would be so dear to him.

"I… I," he stuttered. "I… I'm sorry, but that's too personal."

I frowned in response, getting a little annoyed that Arthur wouldn't tell me his secret. I know that most Pokémon wouldn't dare intrude on others just to learn their secrets, but I intend to know every bit of information anyone would keep from me. As I said before, I would _die _if there was something I didn't know about. Besides, getting Arthur to open up may help him with his problem… if he has a problem, that is.

"Come on Arthur, where's the harm in telling me?" I said in a pleading voice.

"Elana please I-" he said before I cut him off.

"Tell me please?" I pleaded in a childish voice this time.

"No!" he shouted before quickly storming out through the front door.

_Well that was rude_, I thought. But I guess it was my fault for intruding on his privacy in the first place. I'd get my chance to interrogate him later, but for right then, I was starving!

I headed towards the door that Arthur mentioned earlier, already thinking of the delicious food being prepared in the dining room._ I wonder what kinds of food they've got_, I wondered. _Maybe they have berries, or probably those fancy foods I see on TV. Oh, what if they have foreign food!_ My mouth was practically watering at the thoughts of eating something fancy for a change. I just couldn't wait until I could get to the dinning room.

However, my thoughts disappeared as soon as I opened the door to find myself staring down a hallway that broke off into several different hallways. Already I was beginning to feel lost. Arthur hadn't given me precise directions to how to get to the dining room before I made him storm off.

_Dang it Elana! Why did you have to make Arthur mad?_ I cursed to myself. With no one around to help me with directions, I sighed and chose a random hallway to go through, hoping it would be the right one.

As I made my way through the hallway, I was amazed by the decorations and the design of it. Captivating artwork and banners hung here and there along the walls, while plants in vases sitting on small stands decorated the hallway with color. The entire palace seemed to be made out of stone with the color of grainy sand while the floor was made up of beautiful white marble. I admired it all, and it made me somewhat envy Jason. I've probably said this before but I don't know why Jason hates it here, I'd do almost anything to live here.

I soon however came to a halt when I heard voices around the corner of the next hallway. It sounded like two Pokémon were having a conversation. It was probably none of my business, but curiosity got the best of me as I peeked around the corner. From where I was I could see a Raticate and a Doduo standing next to a red wooden door. I could sense that hey both emanated frustration and annoyance, but the Raticate's emotions felt stronger than those of his partner.

"So how'd it go?" the Doduo asked the Raticate.

"No luck, the guy cried the entire time," the Raticate answered. "I don't know about you, but I'd really like to see him in his own grave right now," he said coldly.

"Come on, don't say that, he's our only lead to finding out who he works for," the Doduo reasoned.

The Raticate then turned to the Doduo with an angry look on his face. "I don't care who he works for, he's driving me nuts! I'd say we bury him right now, he's going to be dead once we're done anyways!"

"Hey, calm down," the Doduo said reasoned. "You know what can help? A cup of coffee. You haven't had one of those all day."

The Raticate then sighed, letting all his emotions wash away as he did so. "You're right; I haven't had anything since this morning. We can interrogate the Hitmontop later."

The Doduo put up a smile before saying, "There you go! Now let's get to the dining room before it starts to get packed."

The Raticate nodded to his partner as he followed him down the hall. Within seconds they were out of sight, leaving me alone to investigate the room they were standing out of.

_Who were they talking about_? I asked myself. However it wasn't long before I heard the sound of whimpering behind the red door the two Pokémon had been guarding. Curious, I cautiously walked towards the door, looking for anyone near enough to see me. When I came close enough, I could hear faint whispering coming from the other side of the door. I took one last look behind me to make sure nobody was nearby before I reached for the doorknob. I felt quite uneasy at this point, though it's probably the feeling that I'm entering an area that I'm not supposed to be in. But what's life without a little adventure, right?

I took one deep breath before I finally turned the doorknob and quickly jumped inside as I closed the door behind me. The room was quite dark and small, and the only source of light was a small light bulb in the ceiling, barely shedding enough light to see by. In the center of the room is a wooden table with two chairs placed on opposite sides from each other. Sitting in one of the chairs was a familiar looking Hitmontop crying into his arms. It was quite a sad sight for me… by sad, I mean disappointingly sad.

Just as fast as I had entered the room, the Hitmontop noticed me, giving me a good look at his face as he turned to me. I now knew who this Hitmontop was… he was the one who tried to rob me in the forest a few nights ago! I was quite surprised at this revelation, though I didn't respond with any reaction, but the Hitmontop's reaction was somewhat different from mine.

"Great Arceus, not you again!" the Hitmontop screamed. He bolted out of his seat and then picked up his chair while pointing it at me, like a lion tamer would.

This was not the reaction I would expect to come from anyone, especially from this Hitmontop. The emotions I felt from him were so out of control; I couldn't believe it. I felt high levels of absolute terror and anxiety, giving me the chills. I think you'd have to be the scariest thing alive to make someone that scared. _But am I the scariest thing alive? _I find that completely nonsense… though I think slamming him against a tree with telekinesis probably made me his number one fear.

_What do they want from this joker_? I asked myself. That was until I suddenly remembered the tragic event that took place last night. _Oh right, he was involved with the queen's death_, I thought. I remembered that he was with the group that supposedly snuck in the palace walls and assassinated the queen. I also recalled that the guards, who took the Hitmontop as prisoner, said that they would question him… and then execute him.

I shivered at thought of execution, it seemed so… unnecessary. _Maybe I could try my luck at getting something out of him_, I thought. "Okay, I want to know everything that went on last night. If you tell me, I promise I won't… uh…" I demanded at first but as I continued on I began to falter.

"I t-told you guys, I-I don't have anything to do with it!" he stuttered.

I frowned, I knew he was lying and I didn't have to be a psychic to notice his worried expression. I straightened up and spoke more boldly this time. "Yeah right, if you didn't have anything to do with the queen's death then you wouldn't even be here would you?"

He slowly stepped back only to find his back up against the wall. "Uh, s-stay back!" he shouted.

I just sighed, using simple telekinesis to pull the chair out of his grasp. In response, he cowered away into the corner of the room, breaking into a cold sweat. He certainly was losing his normal attitude to me.

"I'm going to ask you again," I said more sternly this time. "What happened that night?"

The Hitmontop was shaking in fear, barely even capable of replying. "I-I, uh… Okay fine! You guys want to know so badly? Then fine, I'll tell you!" he said with tears beginning to form in his eyes. "T-There was this Bisharp, he didn't say his name, h-he just came out of nowhere with his group of weirdoes and asked me and my brothers if we knew how to get inside the palace. I-I snuck in here a few times awhile back to find that prince, so I said yeah. Then he offered us a couple hundred Poké to lead us there." This was when he broke down in tears.

At a closer inspection of the Hitmontop, I discovered that he had several bruises and nasty scratches that dotted across his body. The discovery was enough to make me gasp in shock. They were probably from his previous interrogations from the guards before I came here. I felt pity for him, I really did. I don't know what those guards did to the Hitmontop, but I'm sure I wouldn't like it at all. Heck, I can't even imagine what took place in this dark room. Now I knew what Jason meant back at the fort, the Hitmontop didn't deserve this punishment he was trying so hard to endure.

I wanted to try and at least help him with his emotional pain, but I didn't know the exact approach. I mean, what would you do if you wanted to help someone who tried to harm you in the past? I hesitantly reached my arm out and placed it over his shoulder, trying my best to comfort him.

He jerked away at my sudden touch; he was quite shocked from my action. "What do you want?" he demanded.

_This isn't working out so well. _I could already tell I was scaring him even more. _Perhaps talking to him nicely will help_? I thought. I cleared my throat to change my tone to a more soothing voice before speaking to him. "Um, what's your name?" I asked, figuring it would be a good conversation starter.

He gave me a quizzical look, as if he didn't believe my sudden concern for him. "M-My name?" he asked.

I nodded to assure him.

He slowly sat down in the corner he was in, legs shaking as he did so. "Well… my name is, uh… Adam… it's Adam."

"Adam?" I repeated.

He nodded.

I didn't expect his name to be Adam, I actually expected him to give himself a more intimidating name because of his activities. I was beginning to picture him as a much more kinder person then he really was.

"Um, did you pick that name yourself?" I asked, struggling to keep the conversation going.

"N-No, actually I was born with that name," he answered.

"Are you comfortable with it?" I asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be? I mean, it's what my parents wanted me to go with, right?" he said.

I began to sense that his nervousness was dieing down, so I had to keep this conversation going. I then thought about asking more deeper questions.

"What made you start robbing Pokémon in the forest in the first place?" I asked curiously.

Adam hesitated at first, as if he didn't want to share his secret. "I just do, what's it to you?" he said with a small hint of hostility.

"I'm just asking, no need to fuss over it. I'm actually kind of interested," I answered defensively.

Adam sighed before speaking. "Well… I… I had no choice! My parents passed away and I had to come up with the money to support my brothers!" he looked down before continuing. "The job I used to have wasn't even enough to keep me alive, so I did the only thing any of us could have done at the moment," he finished.

All his fear and nervousness was all at once washed away, all replaced by sorrow and guilt… _Wait. Guilt?_

"Are you… alright with what you do?" I asked quietly.

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine with it," he lied.

I frowned before saying, "You can't lie to a psychic you know."

Adam bit his lower lip after realizing what I just said. Seconds passed before he finally sighed and said, "Okay, okay… I don't like what I do. There, happy?"

I realized another thing that Jason said… he's just doing what he think is right. "You guys were… just doing what you thought was right," I said.

"I guess you could say that," Adam said.

We stayed there for what seemed like minutes that never wanted to pass. I then broke the silence by offering Adam my hand, saying, "Can you get up?"

He nodded as he took my hand to help himself up. He then walked over to the table in the middle of the room, staring down onto the dark wood like if he was in deep thought.

"We're getting off track here. Do you want to continue your story from last night?" I said with a calm voice.

"Yeah… yeah I could do that," he said as he turned to me.

I felt as if I had just accomplished something right then, as if I had earned his trust. All of his negative emotions had subsided, and he felt more… Calm. Happy.

"Now, where was I? Oh yeah, I led the Bisharp and his group to the palace," Adam started. "There's a hole on one of the walls surrounding the palace, it's hidden by the bushes so nobody bothered to fix it up. Anyways, I led them through there, but I never knew that they were going to kill the queen. After that all hell broke loose. There were guards everywhere but we got away alright. We thought we were home free, until that prince came along and beat me and my brothers up," he said. "And here I am, with a Gardevoir that that nearly killed me," he chuckled at the last part.

I smiled, I had a sense that he enjoyed this little time we had together.

"My name is Elana, by the way," I said as I began to make my way towards the door.

"E-Elana?" Adam called. I turned around. "I-I'm sorry that I tried to rob you back then," he apologized.

I smiled at him before making my own apology. "And I'm sorry that I used psychic attacks on you and your brothers," I said before turning back to the door.

"Um, Elana?" he called once more.

"Yes?" I replied.

"Um, now that you guys know everything you wanted… what are you going to do with me?" he asked.

That question brought a sense of fear into my heart. I then realized that the guards were going to, _get rid of_ Adam once they'd gotten all of the necessary information they wanted. Adam just seemed like a friend I had made in a matter of seconds, and I know I don't want to lose another friend. So I made the decision to save him from his fate.

"They're going to get rid of you, I'm sorry," I admitted solemnly.

Adam had a disappointed look on his face, I also felt sadness overcoming him.

"But I'm going to get you out of here," I said as I walked towards him. "Here, hold on to my hand," said as I held out my arm towards him.

"Uh, w-why?" he said with bright red blush visible on his face.

I giggled at his reaction. "Because I'm going to teleport you out of here, that's why," I said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh, uh, okay," he said uncertainly.

He slowly reached out and eventually held on to my hand, looking at me to see if it was what I actually wanted.

"Alright, hang on," I said as I began to think about the outside of the palace walls.

Just as long as if I've been or seen an area, I should be able to teleport there at anytime. The only problem in teleporting was that I needed to be nearby the area in order to do so. It proved to be a real handy move sometimes, though I rarely ever used it.

Just as fast as it had started, we were away from the dark room and outside of the palace walls. There was nobody around, which was a good thing for us. But right after we had just touched earth beneath us, Adam quickly released his hold on me and was gasping for air.

"Ohhh, I'm feeling a little woozy," he said with a slurred voice.

"Oops, sorry I forgot to warn you about that. The same thing happened to me a couple of times, but you'll get used to it over time," I said apologetically.

"L-Lets just get to town before they find out I'm gone," he suggested while attempting to calm himself.

I nodded and pretty soon we were off on our way towards town. I didn't know what exactly the plan was when we get there, but right now, getting out of sight was the best option. I just hope that Adam knew if Jason was still alive or possibly have more information than he told me. But for right now, all I could do was hope until I could get the answers I was looking for. And hope that Jason is still alive.

**A/N: I've got to say, this chapter was kind of interesting towards the end. But I'm really excited to tell you all about the next chapter, a few more characters will be introduced and a few more problems will arise. I would like to thank my beta reader "Xamem-The Heart of Oblivion" for making the necessary edits for this chapter. And don't forget to leave a review everyone!  
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**Also, I would like to announce that I have a rewritten version of the prologue uploaded! I hope that will make up for my absence. So go ahead and read it and tell me what you think of it.  
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	11. Prison Five

**A/N: I've been looking forward to writing this chapter ever since I started this story, mainly because this marks the beginning of Jason's adventure. Wow, I reached chapter ten? That's quite an achievement there, even with the fact that most stories on fanfiction end around that number. However, this story is nowhere near being done.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon in any way, Gamefreak owns it, I just own this story and the characters.**

Chapter 10: Prison Five

**Jason's P.O.V.**

One moment I found myself onboard Vladislav's ship, with the walrien gloating about his victory. The next, I was in complete blackness. Everywhere I looked was nothing but darkness, all around me, enveloping me. All I felt was the suspension in space; I couldn't feel any warmth or cold, I couldn't even feel the air that should be flowing between my talons. I guess this is what it feels like to be unconscious… or is this a near death experience? I couldn't tell whether I froze to death from Akulina's Ice Beam attack or not.

It wasn't too long before I found out I was not alone in this dark space. Floating about ten feet away from me was a strange dark figure, wearing what looked like to be a tattered black cloak. However I soon realized that the cloak was actually part of the dark figure, he looked like a ghost Pokémon stalking its victim… and it appeared to have had its attention towards me. It stared at me with its icy cold blue eyes, it stared with a ghostly look of sorrow, almost as if it had a great hunger swelling within it.

We stood there, motionless, staring each other in the eyes, as if we were waiting for the other to make the first move. I felt fear within my heart, just looking at the ghostly figure made shivers crawl down my spine. But it was strange… I also felt worry and fear but they were not from me, they felt more distant, almost as if they were coming from the ghost itself. But that was complete nonsense, grovyles can't feel emotions. That was when I realized that I'd seen this ghost before… the night when I snuck out of the palace to retrieve my cloak from Elana.

"Jason," it whispered with its echoic voice. "Do you remember me?"

Too shaken to formally speak words, I just shook my head.

The ghost sighed in disappointment before speaking. "I didn't believe it at first but now I know it's true. They _have_ erased your memory, haven't they?"

I was confused, I didn't know who it was referring to when he said _they_. Swallowing a lump, I dared to speak in front of it. "Wh-who's they? More importantly, who are you?" I asked.

"I must apologize," it started. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am known as many names, far and wide, evil and good. But you can refer to me as-"

That was when I was pulled out of the dark, empty space and brought back into reality, as a fist with an enormous amount of power jolted me awake. Everything was a blur when I opened my eyes, I couldn't even tell where I was. I heard faint voices and noticed that something was covering my eyes; I figured that whoever was here had blindfolded me. I also noticed that I was sitting on something hard and cold, some kind of metal. Slowly, the blurriness was fading way and my vision sharpened; I could make out distinctive shapes through the blindfold. The more consciousness I gained, the more of my senses came back to me. Now I noticed that I was freezing cold, as if I had just been thawed out of the ice Akulina encased me in.

I wasn't able to get a good idea of where I was until I felt something lift me up into the air and throw me over a great distance. I gave a low grunt as my body made contact with an asphalt-like surface. I made an effort to get myself back up on my feet only to collapse in exhaustion, for I was still trying to gain consciousness. Suddenly, I was lifted up from the ground and had my blindfold removed, only to find myself face to face with a large magnezone.

It looked a little larger than most magnezone, but its size made it look more intimidating. It was calm and completely unamused, and it carried an atmosphere of authority around it, almost as prominent as the electricity. Floating by its sides were two magnemites that were acting as the magnezone's escort, or bodyguards perhaps. By my sides were two hitmonlee that were restraining me by my arms.

It was nighttime, the moon was at its highest, and the area around us looked like an abandoned part of a city treated with little care. The buildings that surrounded us looked to be at least ten stories high and their windows were all either broken, or boarded with wooden planks. We were in what seemed to be a dead end street, littered with garbage bags and newspapers. I also noticed that a large black van with red lights flashing above it was parked in front of us, cutting off my view of the rest of the street.

The magnezone floated closer towards me, keeping its body straightened while it stared me down with its eyes as it did so. Then it stopped when it was mere inches from myself and stayed that way for what seemed like an eternity, as if he was waiting for me to say something. The tension grew around us with each passing second, waiting for the other to make their first move.

Finally, the magnezone broke the tension, speaking in a synthesized voice. "I'm quite honored… really I am," the magnezone said, turning its gaze towards the other Pokémon around us before focusing on me again, like it was asking for their opinions. "To have Prince Jason… in my prison."

_Prison_? I asked myself. I felt too weak, too tired to even try and speak words. I felt like I had just run a hundred mile dash without a single break, too worn out to even move my legs.

"Prince Jason… in Prison Five," it continued. "Vladislav has given me the honor to supervise you… to make sure you die a painful death." It paused before continuing its speech. "I have a busy schedule to keep to, so I'm going to be brief here," it said, all serious. "You may do whatever you wish in this wonderful prison, as long as you follow two simple rules. Rule number one, you are to give your full cooperation with the prison guards here, if you harm any of them then you will be severely punished. Rule number two, any attempt to escape the prison will be followed by severe punishment."

_Isn't that the same with any other prison_? I thought to myself. I was actually a little surprised to hear that there weren't other rules to follow. I would've imagined them to be more strict around here, but of course this is probably the Northern region.

The magnezone nodded to the hitmonlee by my sides; they nodded back and swiftly tossed me further down the street like I was nothing to them. The two hitmonlee chuckled to themselves as they climbed into the back of the van.

I grunted in pain as I attempted to stand back up, only achieving failure as I fell flat on the ground from exhaustion. I was on the brink of passing out right there and then.

The magnezone slowly floated towards me, keeping its calm posture along the way. "You have just entered the world of hell, little prince," it said as it finally came close to me.

"From here on out, everything is about survival, how you survive depends entirely on you though… But I guarantee you that you will not cheat death for long, because nobody has survived the nightmares within these walls for years! You will either starve to death, or you will die in the hands of one of your inmates." The magnezone then hovered towards the back of the van, but before it did so, it took one last look at me. "We will be checking on you every now and then, just to let you know!" it called out to me before it departed in the van.

As the black van disappeared through the darkness of the night, so too did my consciousness. My entire vision of the street blackened as I fell into unconsciousness, letting sleep ease the aching pain within my muscles.

* * *

><p>I felt a harsh beam of light in front of my face. I was slightly irritated that someone had come to ruin my slumber, but I knew I had to wake up sometime. The harsh daylight flooded into my eyes as I opened them gingerly, with the blurriness slowly shifting into focus. I still felt an aching pain within me but it wasn't as terrible as it was last night, for I felt like I had regained strength from my sleep. However, the only thing that didn't improve overnight was how cold I was. No, actually, it was much worse this time, I felt like I had been frozen inside an icy tomb for centuries.<p>

The first thing I saw when my vision finally came into focus was a female vulpix, sniffing my face out of curiosity. When she noticed me wide awake, she quickly stumbled back only to trip over her tails in a rather cute fashion. I quietly chuckled to myself at her clumsy action as she blushed in embarrassment.

As the little vulpix began to back away from me I had the idea that I may have been scaring her. She looked timid with a face full of fright; I could tell that she was feeling uneasy just by being near me. I didn't know for sure if she truly feared me or not.

I didn't want to scare her off, she might have been the only one who could act as my guide around the prison. "Uh, that was a little clumsy there, don't you think?" I said with a small chuckle, hoping that I would get a conversation started between us.

She stopped backing away when she was a good ten feet away from me. The vulpix shifted her feet uneasily, still avoiding making eye contact from me. I could see her every muscle was tensed, the insecurity was tangible. Finally, after what seemed like hours waiting for a response, she whispered out something under her breath that was too inaudible for me to hear.

"Um, what was that? I didn't quite catch it," I said in a concerned sort of way, hoping to prove that I meant no harm to her.

The little fox whispered out to me again, a little louder, but I still couldn't understand it.

"Sorry, I still can't hear you. Can you speak a little louder please?" I asked kindly.

I found the vulpix adorable with her attempts to make herself heard by me. I thought that her shyness made her appearance and personality even cuter.

She spoke out once more, only this time I barely caught what she said. "I'm sorry," she apologized in a whisper.

I was confused at what she said, I had no idea what she was apologizing about. "Sorry? Sorry for what?" I asked curiously.

The vulpix shuffled her feet uneasily before replying. "F-For disturbing you," she squeaked.

_Poor girl_, I thought to myself. Somehow I get the feeling that she'd always been like this, like she'd grown up in a environment where she couldn't put her trust into anybody. I wanted to try and ease the tension within her, but how to do so seemed difficult. Anything would have to do to pull her out of her shyness, so I asked, "Are you afraid of me?"

The brown fox shakily nodded to answer my question, like she was hesitating to do so.

_This is going to go nowhere if she's this scared_, I thought. Perhaps calming her down would get her to be more open to me?

"Just calm down for a sec, okay? I don't want to hurt you or anything," I said as gently as I could.

"Y-You wont hurt me?" she asked in a shocked sort of way.

"I promise," I assured her.

The vulpix didn't look very convinced with my answer, she still had a look of fright on her face. She swallowed a lump in her throat before speaking again, only this time she was slightly bolder, "H-How do I know if you're not going to hurt me?"

I sighed as I gestured towards my body and said, "Do I look like if I'm in the condition to do anything at all?"

The vulpix finally saw the truth in my words as she surveyed my body. I was shivering due to the cold and my eyes were weary, which was apparently enough for the fox to calm down a bit. However, I could tell that she was still doubtful, that she didn't totally trust me yet.

I scanned the area to see if there was anybody present other than the vulpix. Nothing seemed to have changed since last night, the dead end street still looked as unpleasant as it did before. The sky was almost all cloud, casting a gloomy shadow over everything.

I struggled to stand back up, summoning any and all strength available in my body to keep from shaking too badly. The vulpix tensed up again, like she was expecting some sort of hostile action from me. When I was finally back on my feet, I thought about what the next course of action should be. I had to get out of that prison, that's for sure, but how to do so was beyond me. However, I did know one thing for sure, survival would be my top priority at the moment.

I gazed at the vulpix for awhile, seeing that she had the courage to stay in my presence, despite being so visibly afraid, brought a feeling of hope over me. _Perhaps I can trust this vulpix to guide me._

"Say, what's your name?" I asked.

The vulpix hesitated for a while but she eventually spoke up. "M-My name's Anna," she answered.

"Anna, huh? Cute name for someone like you," I complemented with a slight smile.

Anna's cheeks blushed a slight tint of pink after my complement; she seemed to have noticed herself blushing and she hid her face from me. "T-Thanks," she said.

My brief moment of happiness disappeared after I remembered the situation I was currently in. "Say Anna, I know this is sort of out of the blue but, do you happen to have a shelter?" I asked.

Anna turned her face back to me with a confused look. As if she thought I was crazy. "Why? Don't you have your own?"

"Well here's the thing, I've just arrived here last night with no idea what to do and I really need to find a place to stay for a while," I explained.

Anna looked just as confused as she cocked her head to the side, as if trying to interpret some hidden meaning behind my words. She studied me as I waited for her response; it seemed like she was thinking over what to do. Finally she said, "You don't seem bad, nor do you look dangerous. But I'll only let you come over to my place if you tell me your name."

"My name?"

"Yes, you never mentioned it. You know, its rude to not introduce yourself," Anna said.

I was a little shocked at this, mainly because I was used to other Pokémon knowing me right off the bat. But I realized I was in foreign land, a region thousands of miles away from home. "Oh, sorry, I assumed that you already knew me."

"Should I?" Anna asked, questioning the importance of my name.

"No, its alright…My name's Jason," I answered. I expected some sort of excited reaction from Anna, but none came.

"Okay then Jason, just follow me and we'll get to my place in no time." She turned around a walked to an alleyway to the left side of the street that was barely visible to me. When she realized that I wasn't following her, she turned around and said, "You coming?"

I nodded to her as I slowly made my way towards her. My feet felt as heavy as bricks so I was moving at a slow pace, it seemed like not much has changed since last night at all. It was an effort to even make my way to where Anna was. After I did however, Anna led me through a series of alleyways through the city-like prison. She occasionally stopped to let me catch up with her, asking if I was able to continue on, I would say "Yes," and we were off in a matter of seconds. Anna told me along the way to be cautious of the inmates who lurk around the streets searching for someone to take their anger out on. I didn't see any at first, giving the city a deserted sort of feel, until we had to cross a street to get to the next block.

As I peered over the corner of the alleyway I could see how intimidating these inmates were; just a single glance at them gave me all the reason I needed to steer clear of them. This was a dead end street like the one before, except it was more lively and full of activity. There were many strong final evolutions that occupied this street, all going through the trash bags that littered the area.

_They must be scavenging for food_, I thought. The sight was enough to show me how harsh this prison really was; it showed me how desperate these Pokémon had gotten.

Even though I moved slower than usual, we managed to sneak past them without much trouble. As we were going through the dark alleys, I asked Anna how much longer it would take until we reached her place. Fortunately, she said that it was just on the next block. The news brought great relief over me, for my legs felt like they were pure iron. I don't know how those metal types could get through the day.

When we finally exited the alley, Anna called out to me with a slight smile. "It's not much, but here we are!"

Standing in front of us from across the street was a five story building that looked like it was once meant to be an apartment. The building was made out of brick and it had several sections of it missing, it almost looked as if a wreaking ball decided to take a few swings at the building itself.

I was uncertain if the building was actually her shelter, I even thought that Anna must have been playing a joke on me. "Are you sure this is where you're staying?" I asked with uncertainty.

Anna turned to me with a slightly offended look. "Yeah, I'm sure this is it," she said with irritation.

"Whoa, take it easy there. I'm not trying to say anything!" I said defensively with my arms in front of me, showing I was being honest with her.

Anna shook her head as she began to cross the street, with me following as well. As we approached the building, it seemed to get darker and eerier with every step closer I took.

The building gave me the feeling that it may have been haunted or abandoned for some time. I also took note that Anna was looking in every direction, like she was paranoid about something. I wrote this off as her typical nervousness.

When we reached the other side of the street, Anna immediately went up to the front door and gave it several sharp knocks in some sort of musical rhythm. At first nothing happened as we waited for some response, as my doubt in Anna increased with every passing second.

"What are you doing?" I asked her.

But before she could answer me, the door suddenly opened. Anna wasted no time in standing around as she dove into the doorway, like she anticipated the opening of the door. I wasn't entirely focused at the time so I was left in confusion on the porch, contemplating what had happened just now.

"Get in!" Anna shouted at me in a hushed whisper.

When Anna's voice snapped me out of my thoughts, I sluggishly followed her inside. The inside of the building didn't seem much different from the exterior; it still looked like an abandoned building. The interior was trashed with no care at all; it looked like an intense fight had taken place, or someone was in a rush to leave that he carelessly left behind all his belongings scattered across the floor. At a closer inspection of the trash I realized that there were balls of crumpled paper and books scattered as well, like a madman was attempting to plan out something only to end in failure every time. The only thing other than debris and books in the room was a staircase in the back of the room that went up to the next floor.

I was pulled out of my thoughts as I heard the door behind me close. I turned around to come face to face with a large blue Pokémon that was twice my size. He had two large fins on the sides of his head just above his orange eyes and a large fan like fin on his rear end. The Pokémon also had a white underside with a slight tint of blue, and orange pad like areas on his knees and elbows. However, what was strange about this Pokémon was that it wore a long dark green coat that had two sets of black buttons.

I was quite intimidated by the Pokémon that stood before me, knowing that he could easily crush me under his massive hands in the condition I was in. It stared me down with a menacing look, like he was trying to prove that he was the thing to be feared around here. It wasn't long before I realized what this Pokémon was. This Pokémon was a swampert.

"Who is this?" the swampert asked Anna in a heavy Russian accent.

"He's a friend, I found him out in the streets," Anna answered.

The swampert took a step closer to me to study me further. He looked into my eyes like he was looking for something in them, possibly traces of any emotion. He stayed like that for what seemed like forever, with the tension growing thicker every second. Not once had he taken his gaze off of me, it almost seemed like he thought that I was going to try something the moment he blinked.

"I-I think he's new here. He doesn't seem to know where he is," Anna interjected, hoping to break the tension around us.

Even when Anna spoke up, he never lifted his eyes off of me. "Why did you bring him here? He could be like the others," the swampert said with disgust.

Anna shuffled her paws nervously before speaking. "I-I checked him… he doesn't seem like a bad person," she said quietly, like she was afraid to speak. "H-His name's Jason, by the way," she added.

The swampert's eyes widened, as if hearing my name clicked something in his mind. "Did you say, Jason?" the swampert asked Anna in a shocked sort of way as it turned around to face her.

Anna avoided the swampert's gaze before stating her answer. "Yes," she said in a quiet squeaky voice.

The swampert turned to face me once again, only this time there was no hostility, rather astonishment. "Great Arceus," he said in a low whisper with a smile beginning to form across his face. "Prince Jason!" he shouted out, like he had achieved something great. "From Naru?"

I slowly nodded. I felt a little startled from being around a Pokémon this excited, it almost felt like I was back at home.

"Here?"

I nodded once more.

"Ha, ha! It is an honor to meet you in person," he said. "Come, follow me. Let us speak together in a more suitable place," the swampert said as he gestured me to follow him up the stairs.

I was too confused to know what exactly had happened, and I was left alone in the room as Anna and the swampert made their way upstairs. I didn't think my reputation would reach even here, the coldest place out in the Pacific.

"Hey, are you coming or not?" the swampert called out from the top of the stairs.

I shrugged the thoughts out of my head as I followed the two to the second floor. The second floor of the building wasn't as messy as the first, but it was still littered with paper and books. The staircase that was supposed to be at the far end of room like the last one was completely destroyed. Placed on the left side of the room was a fireplace with two long couches facing towards it; this was pretty much all that the room had to offer.

I found the swampert tossing logs of wood into the dying fire while Anna was neatly sitting on a couch.

The swampert turned around to face me, and as he did he said, "Sit down; I'm sure you have questions for me."

I complied and sat on the couch next to Anna, who was curled up in a ball like most canine Pokémon would, while the swampert chose to sit on the other couch which was closer to the fireplace.

For a moment there was silence, a peaceful silence. The swampert smiled as he gazed into the fire as it blazed and crackled, like he was proud of it or something. Finally he broke the silence as he spoke to me. "I must apologize that I misjudged you back there. It is quite rare to come across someone you can trust, especially in a place like this where it is every Pokémon for themselves."

"I can already see why," I said, remembering the area Anna and I come across where we found several Pokémon desperately rummaging through the trash heaps for something to eat. The image in my mind taught me what these Pokémon could succumb to once desperate enough; the thought sent chills through my spine.

"Oh, I'm sorry that I did not introduce myself earlier. My name is Sergei, once a proud swampert with remarkable honor… now, a forgotten past to be shunned upon," Sergei said.

"How so?" I asked curiously.

"He doesn't like to talk about it," Anna intervened as she raised her head.

"No, no Anna. I think our guest should have every right to hear my tale," Sergei said with a slight hint of sorrow, as if he had just thought of something regretful.

For a moment everything was silent, all attention was diverted to Sergei to hear what he had to say. He gazed into the fire once more, almost as if it was the most interesting thing in the world to him. It almost felt like an hour had passed in utter silence, nothing to listen to but the gentle crackles of the fire.

Finally, Sergei spoke up. "Do you know of the walrein that goes by the name of Vladislav?" he asked me.

_Vladislav_! The thought shouted within my mind. Just hearing his name brought a feeling of hatred over me. _He played me like an idiot! I swear, the next time I see that face of his, I'll_-

"Jason, are you okay?" Anna asked.

As I was drawn out of my raging thoughts, I noticed that everyone was looking at me with uncertainty. "Oh, uh, yeah I'm okay,"

"Do you know Vladislav?" Sergei asked again.

I remained silent, thinking over what my response should be. Of course I knew Vladislav, so I answered, "Yes," shamefully.

* * *

><p>A small red ship sailed against the ocean waves with ease. From an outsiders prospective, anyone would have guessed that the ship was abandoned with no crew on board. However, there would only be one figure visible on the deck of the ship, gazing out into the endless blue. This dark figure was a Bisharp.<p>

The bisharp wore his black sunglasses and looked at peace. However this was not true. From inside the bisharp, hate and anger directed towards the world itself seethed within him. He was always like this though, and he had no problem with it. In fact, this bisharp loved the negative emotions that thrived inside of him; it was the only thing that actually satisfied him.

From the other end of the ship came an arbok that wore a black military fashioned beret. The arbok slithered towards the bisharp, baring news that he knew all too well that the bisharp would hate to hear. The arbok had witnessed others who had delivered news to the bisharp, and their fates were delivered by the dark knight himself. But not him… the arbok had done this countless of times and escaped each encounter unscathed. Why? Because the arbok was the bisharps most trusted friend.

When the arbok approached the bisharp, he spoke up with much gathered courage in his raspy voice. "Khez, word has arrived from our client," the arbok said, whilst avoiding Khez's gaze.

"And what did he say?" Khez spoke in his deep raspy voice.

"Vladislav says that he no longer needs us to eliminate prince Jason."

"The reason?" Khez asked, showing no signs of dismay or shock whatsoever.

The arbok swallowed a lump before continuing. "He said that he captured the boy himself."

"Interesting," the bisharp said in amusement. "Tell me Kobra, is the boy deceased, or does he still walk among us?"

"Jason? He's alive."

Khez chuckled to himself, like he found the information amusing. "I knew the walrus would be foolish enough to keep him alive just to see him suffer," the bisharp commented.

"What's our course of action now?" Kobra asked.

"Now… I think its time to… give the boy a helping hand," Khez smirked.

"What do you mean by that?" Kobra questioned.

"I mean that its time that we lend some support for the prince," Khez answered with irritation.

Kobra was confused at hearing this, he couldn't understand why Khez wanted to help Jason all of a sudden. "But, why? I mean, you defeated him in that forest once. We have no alliance with him or his region." Kobra said.

Khez slowly turned around to face the cobra like Pokémon. "I would tell you… but then I would have to get rid of you," Khez threatened as he returned to face the ocean once more. "Let's just say… he's a benefit for our organization."

Kobra was still stuck in confusion, but he decided that it wouldn't matter anyways. "So who will go to help the boy then?"

Khez chuckled once more. "It won't be us of course. But it will be… someone he trusts."

**A/N: Done! I am so ashamed with what is probably the longest delay ever, but I have my reasons. I should be able to work on this story more often now that school is out of the way so yippee! Also I would like to announce that I am currently working on ANOTHER story. I started writing it when I encountered writers block while writing this chapter. It has some tie to this story but it will be okay to read without going through this one. However, I don't know whether or not should I release the chapter until I am done with this story, but I'll put a poll up for that soon. I would like to thank Xamem-The Heart of Oblivion for making the edits for this story. Please leave a review and have a great summer!**


	12. A Series Of Unfortunate Events

**A/N: Chapter 11? This is excellent! Sorry for the delay, I haven't really been feeling like myself lately. Let's continue our story now shall we?**

**Dislcaimer: I do not own Pokemon, I only own the characters and the story here.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 11: A series of unfortunate events<p>

**Elana's P.O.V.**

The plaza was as lively as it ever would be on an ordinary day. It seemed to me like it would never be left unattended by the endless crowds that passed by. Either they were just passing through or socializing with one another; it made the heart of the city one of the most active places around New Jamestown.

It had been a day since the invasion began and I was still practically shaking with anxiety. I mean, so many events had occurred to me that day that it was simply too much for me to take in. I was right smack in the middle of a war zone, my head was nearly taken off by a psychotic killer robot bird thing, I had lost my best friend when he willingly turned himself in, and I helped a convict escape his fate to hopefully get information from him regarding my lost friend. But on the bright side of all of this, I was clean and my hair was no longer as frizzy.

Today I'm supposed to be meeting with Adam here at the plaza to discuss our matters, but so far there has been no sign of him anywhere. My legs were beginning to kill me, so I sat on the edge of the large fountain that stood in the center of the plaza. I took out my brown leather notebook and began finishing a picture of what I saw at the fair two nights ago. So far, I had only managed to draw the plaza and some of the stands that were there. I tried to express the beauty of that night the best I could; I wanted to express what I felt that night. However, my thoughts were currently being blocked by worry and the impending arrival of Adam.

_Maybe he's still scared of me_? It was a possibility, but I found it unlikely since we got to know each other a bit better yesterday.

I gazed into my reflection in the water, watching the ripples gently flow through it like it was the most interesting thing to me at the moment.

_If Adam was involved with those criminals the other night, and those criminals are associated with the Northerners, then maybe, just maybe, he might know about the whereabouts of Jason_, I thought hopefully. _But what if he doesn't_? Ever since this morning my mind had been plagued with that possibility, I always managed to tell myself to not even dare think of it. However, the more I look into this matter the more this doubt continues to grow.

"Y-You alright there?" a voice behind me stuttered.

At the sound of the voice, I quickly closed the notebook and turned forward to see the hitmontop named Adam standing in front of me, shuffling his feet nervously.

No matter who it was, I would never let anybody catch even the tiniest glimpse at my notebook. I just can't imagine what their reaction would be if they saw my drawings. Even though friends in the past told me I had a unique talent for drawing, I could never have the guts to show anybody my drawings. Just thinking about what they could say made me feel uneasy.

"There you are! I was beginning to think that you chickened out or something," I said with relief.

"Chickened out?!" he said, like I offended him. "No way! It's going to take a lot more than a witch like you to scare me!" he said as he crossed his arms in a tough sort of manner.

"…What did you just call me?"

His expression quickly changed from serious to worry and fright once he realized what he had just said to me. "Uh, n-nothing! I didn't call you anything, nothing at all, I swear!"

I was on the verge of releasing my fury upon him; I wanted to throw him around with my telekinesis. I would _not_ tolerate these names that others give me! However, I tried my best to restrain myself from making a scene in front of the Pokémon around us.

I took a deep breath to calm myself from the insult, and focused at the matter at hand. "Adam, I need to ask you a question."

"Isn't that why you wanted me to be here?" Adam said, as if it were obvious. It probably was.

"Do you know anything about where they may be keeping Jason?" I asked.

_Please say yes_, I thought hopefully. That was the answer that I wanted to hear after all this trouble, so that it would all be worth it, so that there would be some sort of hope of finding Jason. Perhaps I was getting too desperate at this point, I don't know why but I had the urge to search for every single little detail about Jason's location.

"Where they might be keeping Jason?" Adam asked with an unsure look. "Sorry, but you're asking the wrong guy about that."

The moment I heard those words, my spirits were washed away. I looked down at the floor in utter shame. I felt like everything I'd done up to this point was all for nothing. All my effort, everything I put into this, was all just a waste. It felt like my heart had been torn in two.

"Hey, are you alright there? You don't look too well," Adam asked.

I looked up to face Adam. _Come on Elana, look on the bright side of what you've done so far_, I thought to myself. Well, I did save Adam from his fate and from having to endure more punishment than he deserved. If I hadn't freed him then how would I live the rest of my life knowing that I let a poor, innocent soul die? Thinking about this made me feel somewhat better. I always taught myself that even in times when you think the world has turned against you, it's always better to look into the bright side of things.

"I'm alright," I finally answered for what seemed like a while. "It's just that I'm a little disappointed, that's all."

Adam opened his mouth to say something, but before he got the chance to, a familiar voice called out my name from above. "Hey Elana, is that you?"

Adam and I both looked up to see an Unfezant soaring above us in the sky. At first I didn't recognize who the bird was until he gracefully dove down and landed besides us. Now that the Unfezant was close enough for me to get a clear look at him, my mind instantly clicked. I realized that his name was Pax; he was one of Jason's friends! I don't really know much about his friends though, they only gave me a brief introduction about themselves for the one time we met each other. If I remember correctly, Pax was the clumsy one. I think.

"Oh, you're Pax, right?" I asked just to be sure I was talking to the right person.

"Yeah that's right, the one and only," Pax said.

I noticed that Pax was panting lightly, like he was exhausted from flying. He must have been soaring around the sky for quite some time now. But for what reason, I hadn't a clue.

"Hey, who's your friend here?" he asked, pointing his wing towards Adam.

"Oh, this is Adam, he uh…" I trailed off. I knew I couldn't expose what Adam used to do, nor could I tell Pax that I broke him out of custody, who knew what reaction Pax might have. He might tell the authorities!

"He… h-he's new around here, just like me! I'm just showing him around," I lied.

Pax didn't look entirely convinced; he had a suspicious look on his face. "Why are you stuttering like that?" he asked.

"Stutter? I-I'm not stuttering! Who said I was stuttering?"

To be honest, I'm a terrible liar. Whenever I lie I tense up and get really nervous, I start to stutter and then my sentences start to make no sense, especially as I have to lie more. Anybody, even the simplest of Pokémon, can tell I'm lying right off the bat.

"Um Pax, what are you doing here?" I asked, hoping to quickly change the subject before he decided to go deeper into the subject.

"Oh right!" Pax said like he just remembered something important. "I've been trying to look for Jason all day; he was supposed to meet us at our hangout. Have you seen him anywhere?" Pax explained. His eyes then widened for some odd reason, and then he turned his attention to Adam as if he noticed him standing there for the first time. "Ah shoot, I did it again!" he shouted in frustration.

"Did what?" I asked in a slightly confused way, seeing that Pax had done nothing regrettable at the moment.

"Jason keeps telling us to keep our beaks shut about him in public, now this guy knows about him!" Pax exclaimed.

Adam had a quizzical look on his face, probably because that Pax was oblivious to the fact that Adam already knew Jason at one point.

"Listen, can you keep a secret?" Pax said with an obvious look of shame on his face.

Adam nodded.

"Please don't tell anybody that we know the prince, okay?" Pax pleaded.

"Uh, sure. I won't say a word," Adam said with uncertainty.

"Okay good," Pax said in relief. "So, have you seen him Elana?"

_Should I tell him_? I asked myself. I didn't know whether or not I should tell one of Jason's friends about the truth. If I confess about the events regarding yesterday, then I would risk setting the whole region in a panic just like Arthur said. _He has the right to know doesn't he_? _He is one of his friends after all_. That was true, his friends should know about what happened… but not yet. I can tell them some other time, I'll tell them eventually, but not now.

"No sorry I haven't seen him either," I said in one breath.

"Are you okay there?" Pax asked with his skeptical look. "You sure have been acting strange since I brought up Jason."

Before I got the chance to come up with a ridiculous lie, a new voice spoke up from behind Pax.

"Excuse us miss, but are you Elana?"

We all turned our attention to the source of the voice that intervened in our conversation. It belonged to a pawniard, but there wasn't just one present but two of them. They were both calmly standing there side by side like they were here on official business. I don't know why, but being around these two Pokémon gives me an eerie feeling, like I know I should be aware of something about these two.

"Hey Elana, how many of your friends did you invite here?" Adam asked.

I could feel that Adam was getting a little uncomfortable with how many Pokémon were gathered right now; he's either not used to being around others he doesn't know, or he probably intended to avoid as much attention as possible.

"Yeah, my name's Elana. Is there something wrong?" I asked as casually as I could.

The two small knights then turned to each other and nodded, like they agreed to something.

"We need you come with us miss. There is an urgent matter that must be discussed with you," the first pawniward said.

I felt the tension began to creep inside me. Did they already know what was up back at the palace? If so, who knows what the consequences for helping a convict are. Just thinking about my fate sent shivers down my spine.

Not wanting to get into any deeper trouble than I was already in, I nodded and said okay.

"Please follow us," the second pawniard gestured.

I turned to look at Pax and Adam to see what did they have to say before I was dragged off to who knows where.

Pax was the first to speak up. "Uh, I'll just wait and have a chat with your friend here until you get back," Pax said.

Adam just gave me his unsure look and didn't say another word.

I sighed in distress then picked up my notebook and decided to follow the two knights, leaving my two acquaintances to themselves.

_What are these Pokémon going to do with me_? was the thought that circled my mind as I traveled through the streets with these mysterious two. They're probably going to question me for breaking Adam out. But one thing that bothered me at the moment was that they didn't do the standard procedures to arrest someone like any other official would. They didn't even state what I did nor handcuff me. Now that I think of it, they didn't even seem interested in Adam at all! The more I thought about the subject, the more suspicious these two became to me. I wondered if they were even officials at all.

We were now heading deeper into the town. I couldn't really recall what part of the town we were currently in. Maybe I've never traveled this far into the city.

The crowded streets were beginning to thin, and the shopping stands have become more of a rare sight. Soon enough, we were in an area where none of the two existed; instead they were replaced by large warehouses and Pokémon moving crates or bags in and out of these buildings.

I wanted to ask the pawniards why they were escorting me out here, but for some reason I felt too afraid to ask. There had to be some purpose for bringing me here, but wondering about it only made the unknown answer even more mysterious. Eventually though, I worked up the courage to ask them my longing question.

"Excuse me, but why-" I started to say and I was immediately cut off by one of the pawniards.

"Please save your questions for until we arrive," the first pawniard said.

"But where-" I was cut off again by the second pawniard when he sent a piercing glare my way, shutting me up completely.

He turned his attention back at the road ahead of him, mumbling as he did so. I think I caught the word _annoying_ somewhere in there.

It wasn't long before we finally came to a stop in front of one of the warehouses. It looked ominously dark and abandoned, as if nobody gave much attention to it.

The first pawniard walked up to the front door of the building and inserted a key into the keyhole. He twisted the key and as he did it made a small click, signaling that the door was now open. He then turned to me and motioned me to get inside.

I had no other choice so I complied by slowly going through the doorway in which the pawniard opened for me, unsure of what awaited me in the dark building. As I entered, the other two followed me in as well, only they locked the door behind them, sealing us in the darkness of an enormous room. Now I was afraid of what was about to happen; my heart began pounding in fear.

_Darn it Elana_! _Its never a good idea to go to creepy places with strange Pokemon_.

Almost in an instant, the lights came on, revealing mountains of crates of all sizes scattered across the warehouse. One of the pawniards had turned on the light switch, which was conveniently placed next to the door in which we came through.

"Follow us," said the first pawniard as he motioned me to follow him into the enormous clutter of this place.

_Great, more walking_.

When I followed the two into the large mess of boxes, I was surprised to find that there was actually room for us to walk through. The way these crates were placed might have looked like somebody just decided to toss them here, but once we started venturing in it almost seemed like they were purposely arranged that way to confuse anyone who came in. From what I could tell, the way these crates were arranged made open pathways for easy access to who knows what.

I wanted to know badly what these two knights wanted, but asking them kindly wasn't doing anything. Heck, I even tried to read their minds or emotions at least, but for some odd reason I couldn't pick up anything. It was almost as if they had put a mental barrier around themselves to prevent getting read by a psychic like me; it was like they were prepared to confront me. Reading their emotions was a waste of effort as well; there was nothing to be found except a big space of nothingness, like they were machines or something. In my past experiences, I'd occasionally encountered few who were like these two. They were usually important Pokémon who taught themselves how to protect their minds from psychics as well, but I caught small glimpses of what was going inside their heads. These guys however, were tough to read. I couldn't even get a small peek into their minds.

Soon enough though, we found ourselves in a clearing that was big enough for us to walk freely. The area had many paths jutting out of it, and from what I could tell it must have been the center of the entire warehouse. There was nothing else special to this place other than the open crates that were lying around.

"Alright, this will do," said one of the pawniards as they turned to face me.

_This is it, looks like I'm finally going to get my answer now, weather I like it or not_, I thought to myself. I was very nervous at this point, I didn't know what to expect the next second. You know the feeling when you know you've done something wrong, and the person you want to keep that a secret from is about to find out what you did? That was what I was feeling at the moment.

"So what is so important that you had to drag me all the way here?" I asked, afraid of what their response would be.

I was half expecting them to perform something hostile to me, like push me into one of these open crates, but to my surprise one of the black pawns pulled out an orange envelope.

"We need to discuss something with you Elana," said the pawniard as he handed me the envelope.

Confused at this, I eyed the pawns suspiciously before accepting the envelope. "What is this?" I asked curiously.

They didn't reply to me, instead they just stood there with their blade-like arms behind their backs. Figuring that my answer would only be found within the contents of the envelope, I decided to open it. Unfortunately when I did open it, I found nothing but thin air within the envelope!

_Is this some kind of joke_? That was what I wanted to say, but before I did something unexpected happened.

All of a sudden a loud crash was heard echoing throughout the warehouse, it was loud enough to sound like it happened right next to us. In truth, it actually did happen right next to us. At first two or three crates landed a few feet away from us, leaving us confused and wondering where they came from. Then all of a sudden, humongous amount of wooden crates came crashing down around us; it seemed like an avalanche! What could have caused one of the mountains of crates to collapse?

When the avalanche of crates finally ceased, I was amazed that none of the crates had managed to land on any of us. The floor all around us was littered with scattered pieces of splintered wood and all sorts of random junk ranging from tools, to household equipment. The two pawniards, as well as myself, were not harmed in any way, we were just a bit shaken up by the surprise. Speaking of surprises, when I gazed up at the pile of crates of which the avalanche originated from, I found two familiar figures standing at the base of the pile.

They were of course the two idiots who were somehow my friends known as Pax and Adam.

The pawniards noticed them as well, and boy they were angry. After a long awkward moment in silence, the two only managed to show a sheepish grin and say "oops," in embarrassment. Here I thought _I_ was the clumsy one.

After I shot the two with an eye piercing glare that made them shudder, I turned to the two pawns to apologize for the catastrophe my friends created. However, I never got the chance to say sorry when the first pawniard shouted out in rage.

"Do you two know how long it took us to set this place up? It took us weeks! Nobody else, just us!" the pawniard ranted as if his masterpiece was ruined or something.

I wanted to try and calm the guy down, but he kept on ranting, preventing me from having the chance to do so.

"Sure, I told the guys back home to at least help us with this, but no! They insisted that we do this whole thing ourselves!" the pawniard continued. "I shouldn't have to put up with this nonsense, they should've sent someone else to do this job! But now I'm here watching you imbeciles!" he finished, taking deep breaths.

A moment of silence then followed. The tension in the air was palpable. Pax and Adam were both looked dumbstruck at what the pawniard had just shouted at them. I could almost hear thoughts within their heads suggesting they make a dash and forget this unfortunate event ever occurred.

"Uh… sorry?" Pax sheepishly apologized.

As if the disgraceful apology was the last straw for the pawns, the second pawniard then said, "You know what, let's get this over with."

_Get over with what_? I wondered. I also recalled certain parts in the pawniard's rant that stood out to me. _Who's they_? _And what job was he talking about_? _More importantly_, _did he say watching us_? Unfortunately while I was in my own mind, the pawniards made a daring move on me.

They pushed me into one of the open crates behind me! It happened so fast that my mind wasn't even able to register what was going on at the moment. I felt a sudden push towards my waist, and then I recalled falling back into one the crates. As I was struggling to get myself up, the lid was suddenly snapped onto the top of the crate, then I was in darkness.

"Oh come on!" I yelled in frustration. Looks like my suspicions was correct. To be honest, I should have seen this coming. Some psychic I was.

In no time at all, I heard quite a racket and grunts coming from the outside; it sounded like there was a fight going on. I wouldn't be surprised if the two pawniards were letting their anger out on the two outside. I mean, who wouldn't after what Pax and Adam just did?

Almost as fast as the fight had just started, light shone through the top of the crate for a brief second when Pax and Adam fell into my crate with dazed looks over their faces. _Wow, they must have had it pretty rough_.

"Ow! Why does my head hurt all of a sudden?" Pax said.

"Why does everyone always insist on hitting my face?" Adam shouted in pain as he covered affected body area.

_Great_, _now I'm stuck in a box with these two whining idiots_!

When the two finally stopped moaning for a second, I decided to ask them the question that had been burning me since the moment I found them here. "What do you two think you're doing here?!"

The two turned their attention to me like they had just noticed me sitting here with them for the first time. Pax was the first to speak up. "It was Adams idea! He was the one who thought about following you and those weirdoes here!"

"Hey, that's not true! You were the one who was worrying about her in first place!" Adam shot back.

"Okay that may be true, but you still wanted to follow her!"

"No I didn't! I was just the innocent bystander in all of this. You dragged me into this mess!"

"Right, says the one who decided to climb boxes for a better view!"

Arceus, they sound like children, fighting over something so meaningless!

"Shut up!" I intervened, silencing the two from arguing any more. I had the two's attention now, so I sighed in expiration before continuing. "Listen you two. I've already gone through enough trouble. I'm inside a box with you two numbskulls for crying out loud! Don't make my day any worse or else I'll take it all out on you two!" I threatened.

At first there we were in complete utter silence, the kind of silence you would treasure after a moment of being in a loud environment. Then it was abruptly broken when Pax spoke out.

"Hey, don't blame me! It's this Adam guy you should take it out on!" Pax said defensively.

Adams eyes widened, as if being suggested as being the victim of my irritation frightened him. "No way! I'm not going to be her punching bag!"

"Yes you are," said Pax.

"No I'm not! You don't know what this gardevior is capable of!"

_Oh Arceus_, _what did I do to deserve this_? I thought to myself

**A/N: End of chapter. Thanks for reading all of you! We'll be going on to Jasons P.O.V in the next chapter and see how's he doing at the moment. I would like to Xamem-The Heart of Oblivion for taking the time to edit this chapter. Please leave a review of what you think so far and favorite!**


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